The Caribbean Reef Shark
Carcharhinus perezii
One of the most well photographed shark species, the Caribbean Reef Shark is found along the west Atlantic Ocean from Florida to southern Brazil. They are fittingly the most common shark species found in the coral reefs of the Caribbean.
Often mistaken for other similar species of shark, these sharks can be uniquely identified by short, blunt snouts and a lack of any distinguishing markings on their fins. They are also grey brown or dark grey on their topside and white to light yellow on their underside. These sharks can reach sizes of up to 5 to 10 ft long with females growing larger than males.
They are generally thought to feed on fishes and rays. Their teeth are serrated for ripping off chunks of flesh. Despite being more native to shallow waters, these sharks are still capable of diving as deep as 1,250 feet below the surface. An unusual trait of these sharks is that they are known to “sleep” on the ocean floor or in reefs. They likely aren’t actually sleeping and are more or less just resting, they also aren’t the only shark species to do something like this.