I’ve decided to write a series of articles that provide an overview of scientific research on tiger sharks. I have collected numerous scientific publications and will provide you with an outline of each study or research undertaken on tiger sharks. Since my island, Fuvahmulah, has turned into a tiger shark hotspot, I have decided to share these articles. In the interest of our island and the Maldives as a whole, it is imperative to maintain significant scientific publications on a single platform, such as this website.
This article discusses the biological and population parameters of tiger sharks. In 2018, researchers conducted a study in Indonesia to understand the biological and population characteristics of tiger sharks in that country. The research was done at the Tanjung Lua Fish Landing Port in West Nusa Tenggara. The study was carried out from March to December 2018.
To examine the links between length frequency and length weight, the total lengths of 696 tiger sharks were measured. There were 335 males and 361 females. Tiger sharks were 348.4 cm long overall. Linf, the von Bertalanffy growth parameter, was used to estimate age, growth, and mortality. This determines the average maximum size that adult fish would reach if they lived indefinitely.
The study found that the length was 379 cm and that it grew at a rate of 0.12 cm per year. Linf was 381 cm for a female shark, and the female growth rate was 0.15 years.
Length
The male tiger shark is generally lengthier than the female. The average male tiger shark length is 250.4 cm, while the female tiger shark length is just 246.4 cm. Different conditions occurred for the infinity length (Linf) of this species, with female tiger sharks being longer than male tiger sharks.
It was discovered that the length-weight relationship had similar parameters for male, female, and combined sex. And their weight increases faster than their length. The researchers found that seasonal, environmental, and food availability changes caused the difference.
The female tiger shark’s length was 381 cm longer than the male’s. The infinity length (Linf) for mixed sex was 380 cm. A Northwest Atlantic, USA, study also found that the female had longer Linf as well. The Western North Atlantic Linf measured 340 cm in length for female tiger sharks and 330 cm in length for male tiger sharks.
Growth rate
The study found that tiger sharks grow at a rate of 0.15 per year for females, 0.12 per year for males, and 0.10 per year for all three. Researchers say that the rate of growth is similar in many other places as well.
Hawaii, USA, had the highest growth rate (K) for this species, at 0.31 years per year. Researchers have found that tiger sharks grow very slowly. Some sharks, like silky sharks, blue sharks, and bull sharks, also grow slowly. Bull sharks grow at a rate of 0.07% per year. The study found that tiger sharks gain weight faster than they grow in length.
