There are more than 500 species of sharks inhabiting our planet. These predators outlived the dinosaurs and have perfectly adapted to the modern conditions. They are very different. Let's take a closer look at them!

The human being has always been fascinated by danger, that's his nature. In the 1970ies, an Australian diver began organizing visit-the-shark tours, although the visits were made to the most bloodthirsty species: tiger or white sharks. Afterwards, people from all over the world followed this idea.

Of course, there were no shark victims as these tours were organized most carefully and thoroughly taking into account all security measures. As a result, people now have an opportunity to observe sharks in their natural habitat and get the thrill without any harm or danger.

The Bahamas is among the most popular places where one can swim with sharks and watch them being fed. AirPano team visited two interesting spots: the area of Tiger Sand beach, the habitat of the tiger shark, and the waters of Bimini Island, the place of the hammerhead shark. Species like lemon, whitetip reef and bull sharks and other predatory fish species can also be met here.

The great white shark is one of the most well-known predators. It is reflected in other alternative names of this species: shark-maneater and white death.

The white shark is notable for its size: the greatest length among these sharks ever registered is 6.1 meters, while the average size is up to 5 meters. The lifespan of great white sharks is estimated to be as long as 70 years, making it one of the most long-living fish in the world.

Great white sharks prey upon fish, dolphins and other marine animals, but not human beings: they are hardly digestible for sharks. But still, they are responsible for a great number of injuries and even deaths: in 2012 the number of accidents was estimated to be 272. There is no contradiction in these facts: sharks attack people because of some provocation or irritant, they bite and swim away so that people die because of a major blood loss.

In some areas, there is a tourist program "Diving with sharks". The animal is attracted by meat, and the person wishing to have a look at it is taken under the surface of the water (at a depth ranging from 1.5 to 7 meters) in a special secure cage.

The world's largest extant animal is the whale, while the largest living fish species is the shark that was named in honor of this animal, the whale shark.

Its average length is 9 meters, but the examples of an 18-meters length are known. A whale shark's teeth are tiny but it has over 300 rows of them. The overall number of teeth is as high as several thousand! It is a rather peaceful shark. Nature created this giant fish to be fed on plankton and small fishes. The shark gathers the volumes of water, filters it through the gills while the teeth lock the food in a mouth and then it goes to the stomach.

As this shark doesn't need to hunt, it is a rather tranquil and slow animal. Its maximum speed is 5 km/h which the shark can reach only under exceptional circumstances. For reference, the great white shark can swim at speeds of over 56 km/h.

There is an amazing archipelago called The Gardens of the Queen in the Caribbean Sea. The name was given by Christopher Columbus and the natural treasure itself was declared a National Park by Cuba.

The Caribbean reef sharks are one of its inhabitants. This predator is capable of growing up to three meters long, but mostly you may find a 2-meter-long shark. They are not interested in humans because there are many fish on the reefs and hunger can be satisfied by eating them.

The islands of Fiji that have found themselves in the south-western part of the Pacific Ocean are considered one of the best diver's destinations in the world. The famous oceanographic explorer Jean-Michel Cousteau has named them the "Soft Coral Capital of the World", as this kind of corals grows here in abundance. This thing, in its turn, attracts over 300 species of fish, a lot of turtles and many other marine inhabitants. In between July and May, the underwater visibility reaches 30-40 meters revealing to the spectator a breathtaking panorama.

One of the most popular places for divers and underwater photographers is Beqa Island. It is the oasis of pristine nature with marvelous beaches, waterfalls and coral reefs of the most peculiar forms.

Beqa Lagoon was created by a huge barrier reef and probably once was a volcano's crater. Several species of sharks, such as tiger sharks, bull sharks, silvertip sharks, grey reef sharks, whitetip reef sharks and nurse sharks have settled here making it the place with probably the richest diversity and quantity of sharks in the world.

In our video we try to show the sharks in their natural living environment. We hope that you have liked observing these dangerous, beautiful and gracious kings of the World Ocean!

Video by: Alexey Tischenko, photos by Oleg Gaponyuk, Alexey Tischenko and Dmitry Vasyanovich. Stitching by Ivan Roslyakov and Nickolay Denisov

27 January, 2023