Tiger shark Facts for Kids
Galeocerdo cuvier · gal-ee-oh-SER-doh KOO-vee-ay
A big striped shark that eats many kinds of sea animals.
- 🏃 speed: not yet checked
- ⚖️ 849 to 1,400 lb385 to 635 kg1
- 📏 11 to 14 ft3.3 to 4.3 m1 long
- 🎂 27 years27 years1
- 🍽️ meat
- Doing fine, for now (Near Threatened)
A tiger shark is a big shark with stripes. It lives in warm salt water. It eats many kinds of sea animals.
Tiger sharks live in warm salt water, from shallow reefs down to deep water. They eat many kinds of food: sea turtles, birds, snakes, crabs, shellfish and dugongs.
The tiger shark is a big shark of warm salt water, found from shallow places to deep water. It eats many kinds of sea animals, from shellfish and crabs to sea turtles, birds, snakes and dugongs. It does not rely on speed: it moves slowly and quietly. In the wild a tiger shark lives for many years.
How big is a tiger shark?
Tiger shark in numbers
| Length | 11 to 14 ft3.3 to 4.3 m1adults; some are longer |
|---|---|
| Height at the shoulder | no checked number yet |
| Weight | 849 to 1,400 lb385 to 635 kg1adults |
| Top speed | no checked number yet |
| How long it lives | 27 years27 years1average; in the wild |
| What it eats | sea turtles, birds, snakes, crabs, shellfish and dugongs |
| Where it lives | warm salt water, from shallow reefs to deep water |
| What kind | Fish |
| Is it in danger? | Doing fine, for now (Near Threatened)2 |
A number we couldn’t find on a page we trust says so, instead of guessing.
Wow!
- A tiger shark eats many kinds of sea animals.
- It lives from shallow reefs to deep water.
- It moves slowly and quietly.
Compare the tiger shark
Friends and neighbours
Great white shark
Green sea turtle
West Indian manateeThree questions
Books about the tiger shark, free at the library
Ask a grown-up to tap the button: it shows where to borrow a book about the tiger shark for free.
For teachers
Use this animal in class: its facts are on this page, and the cards print from it.
Where these numbers come from
- University of Michigan Museum of Zoology, Animal Diversity Web: Galeocerdo cuvier (tiger shark), checked 10 November 2026.
- Wikidata, from the IUCN Red List, checked 10 November 2026.
- Wikidata, Tiger shark (Q188212), checked 30 October 2026.