Shark \Shark\ (sh[aum]rk), n. [Of uncertain origin; perhaps
through OF. fr. carcharus a kind of dogfish, Gr. karchari`as,
so called from its sharp teeth, fr. ka`rcharos having sharp
or jagged teeth; or perhaps named from its rapacity (cf.
Shark, v. t. & i.); cf. Corn. scarceas.]
1. (Zool.) Any one of numerous species of elasmobranch fishes
of the order Plagiostomi, found in all seas.
[1913 Webster]
Note: Some sharks, as the basking shark and the whale shark,
grow to an enormous size, the former becoming forty
feet or more, and the latter sixty feet or more, in
length. Most of them are harmless to man, but some are
exceedingly voracious. The man-eating sharks mostly
belong to the genera Carcharhinus, Carcharodon, and
related genera. They have several rows of large sharp
teeth with serrated edges, as the great white shark
(Carcharodon carcharias or Carcharodon Rondeleti)
of tropical seas, and the great blue shark
(Carcharhinus glaucus syn. Prionace glauca) of all
tropical and temperate seas. The former sometimes
becomes thirty-six feet long, and is the most voracious
and dangerous species known. The rare man-eating shark
of the United States coast (Carcharodon Atwoodi) is
thought by some to be a variety, or the young, of
Carcharodon carcharias. The dusky shark
(Carcharhinus obscurus) is a common species on the
coast of the United States of moderate size and not
dangerous. It feeds on shellfish and bottom fishes.
[1913 Webster]
Note: The original 1913 Webster also mentioned a "smaller
blue shark (C. caudatus)", but this species could not
be found mentioned on the Web (August 2002). The
following is a list of Atlantic Ocean sharks:
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Common and Scientific Names of Atlantic Sharks
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
from "Our Living Oceans 1995" (published by the
National Printing Office):
NMFS. 1999. Our Living Oceans. Report on the status of
U.S. living marine resources, 1999. U.S. Dep. Commer.,
NOAA Tech. Memo. NMFS-F/SPO-41, on-line version,
http://spo.nwr.noaa.gov/olo99.htm.
(the following list is found at at
http://spo.nwr.noaa.gov/app5.pdf)
(1) Pelagic Sharks
Thresher shark (Alopias vulpinus)
Bigeye thresher (Alopias superciliosus)
Oceanic whitetip shark (Carcharhinus longimanus)
Sevengill shark (Heptrachias perlo)
Sixgill shark (Hexanchus griseus)
Bigeye sixgill shark (Hexanchus vitulus)
Shortfin mako (Isurus oxyrinchus)
Longfin mako (Isurus paucus)
Porbeagle (Lamna nasus)
Blue shark (Prionace glauca)
(2)Large Coastal Sharks
Sandbar shark (Carcharhinus plumbeus)
Reef shark (Carcharhinus perezi)
Blacktip shark (Carcharhinus limbatus)
Dusky shark (Carcharhinus obscurus)
Spinner shark (Carcharhinus brevipinna)
Silky shark (Carcharhinus falciformis)
Bull shark (Carcharhinus leucas)
Bignose shark (Carcharhinus altimus)
Galapagos shark (Carcharhinus galapagensis)
Night shark (Carcharhinus signatus)
White shark (Carcharodon carcharias)
Basking shark (Cetorhinus maximus)
Tiger shark (Galeocerdo cuvier)
Nurse shark (Ginglymostoma cirratum)
Lemon shark (Negaprion brevirostris)
Ragged-tooth shark (Odontaspis ferox)
Whale shark (Rhincodon typus)
Scalloped hammerhead (Sphyrna lewini)
Great hammerhead (Sphyrna mokarran)
Smooth hammerhead (Sphyrna zygaena)
(3) Small Coastal Sharks
Finetooth shark (Carcharhinus isodon)
Blacknose shark (Carcharhinus acronotus)
Atlantic sharpnose shark (Rhizoprionodon erraenovae)
Caribbean sharpnose shark (Rhizoprionodon porosus)
Bonnethead (Sphyrna tiburo)
Atlantic angel shark (Squatina dumeril)
[PJC]
2. A rapacious, artful person; a sharper. [Colloq.]
[1913 Webster]
3. Trickery; fraud; petty rapine; as, to live upon the shark.
[Obs.] --South.
[1913 Webster]
Basking shark, Liver shark, Nurse shark, Oil shark,
Sand shark, Tiger shark, etc. See under Basking,
Liver, etc. See also Dogfish, Houndfish,
Notidanian, and Tope.
Gray shark, the sand shark.
Hammer-headed shark. See Hammerhead.
Port Jackson shark. See Cestraciont.
Shark barrow, the eggcase of a shark; a sea purse.
Shark ray. Same as Angel fish
(a), under Angel.
Thrasher shark or Thresher shark, a large, voracious
shark. See Thrasher.
Whale shark, a huge harmless shark (Rhinodon typicus) of
the Indian Ocean. It becomes sixty feet or more in length,
but has very small teeth.
[1913 Webster]
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Tiger \Ti"ger\, n. [OE. tigre, F. tigre, L. tigris, Gr. ti`gris;
probably of Persian origin; cf. Zend tighra pointed, tighri
an arrow, Per. t[imac]r; perhaps akin to E. stick, v. t.; --
probably so named from its quickness.]
1. A very large and powerful carnivore (Felis tigris)
native of Southern Asia and the East Indies. Its back and
sides are tawny or rufous yellow, transversely striped
with black, the tail is ringed with black, the throat and
belly are nearly white. When full grown, it equals or
exceeds the lion in size and strength. Called also royal
tiger, and Bengal tiger.
[1913 Webster]
2. Fig.: A ferocious, bloodthirsty person.
[1913 Webster]
As for heinous tiger, Tamora. --Shak.
[1913 Webster]
3. A servant in livery, who rides with his master or
mistress. --Dickens.
[1913 Webster]
4. A kind of growl or screech, after cheering; as, three
cheers and a tiger. [Colloq. U. S.]
[1913 Webster]
5. A pneumatic box or pan used in refining sugar.
[1913 Webster]
American tiger. (Zool.)
(a) The puma.
(b) The jaguar.
Clouded tiger (Zool.), a handsome striped and spotted
carnivore (Felis macrocelis or Felis marmorata) native
of the East Indies and Southern Asia. Its body is about
three and a half feet long, and its tail about three feet
long. Its ground color is brownish gray, and the dark
markings are irregular stripes, spots, and rings, but
there are always two dark bands on the face, one extending
back from the eye, and one from the angle of the mouth.
Called also tortoise-shell tiger.
Mexican tiger (Zool.), the jaguar.
Tiger beetle (Zool.), any one of numerous species of active
carnivorous beetles of the family Cicindelidae. They
usually inhabit dry or sandy places, and fly rapidly.
Tiger bittern. (Zool.) See Sun bittern, under Sun.
Tiger cat (Zool.), any one of several species of wild cats
of moderate size with dark transverse bars or stripes
somewhat resembling those of the tiger.
Tiger flower (Bot.), an iridaceous plant of the genus
Tigridia (as Tigridia conchiflora, Tigridia
grandiflora, etc.) having showy flowers, spotted or
streaked somewhat like the skin of a tiger.
Tiger grass (Bot.), a low East Indian fan palm (Chamaerops
Ritchieana). It is used in many ways by the natives. --J.
Smith (Dict. Econ. Plants).
Tiger lily. (Bot.) See under Lily.
Tiger moth (Zool.), any one of numerous species of moths of
the family Arctiadae which are striped or barred with
black and white or with other conspicuous colors. The
larvae are called woolly bears.
Tiger shark (Zool.), a voracious shark (Galeocerdo
tigrinus syn. Galeocerdo maculatus) more or less barred
or spotted with yellow. It is found in both the Atlantic
and Indian Ocean. Called also zebra shark.
Tiger shell (Zool.), a large and conspicuously spotted
cowrie (Cypraea tigris); -- so called from its fancied
resemblance to a tiger in color and markings. Called also
tiger cowrie.
Tiger snake (Zool.), either of two very venomous snakes of
Tasmania and Australia, Notechis scutatis and Notechis
ater, which grow up to 5 feet in length.
Tiger wolf (Zool.), the spotted hyena (Hyaena crocuta).
Tiger wood, the variegated heartwood of a tree (Machaerium
Schomburgkii) found in Guiana.
[1913 Webster]
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