How many bones does a shark have

How many bones does a shark have? The answer is “None”! Sharks do not have bones. Rather, they are made of cartilage and muscles.

Why fossilized shark teeth exist in tons?

This is a question that is intrigues many. The fact is there are present very little fossilized shark skeletons. On the other hand, fossilized shark teeth are present in plenty.

A simple explanation for the same is sharks, unlike most vertebrate animals including humans are devoid of bone-made skeletons. Rather, their skeletons are created from cartilage.

It is something that you will find in your ears and nose. Cartilage is rather more flexible and less dense. However, it does not fossilize typically like that of hone, since it fails to mineralize.

It is termed to be a major difference which tends to separate sharks along with their relatives. They are referred to as ‘cartilage fish’ or ‘Chondrichthyes’, while the other fishes are considered as ‘bony fishes’ or ‘Osteichthyes’.

What is cartilage?

You may want to know all about cartilage and how this is different from boney. A simple example is, it is tough to bend the bone as they are quite rigid. But organs made of cartilage like the nose and ears are flexible and can be bent easily.

Some of the skeleton parts of shark have dense cartilage when compared to others. It includes shark vertebrae, which at times fossilize.

However, not all cartilage can be termed to be the same. The shark’s skeleton is made up of different parts. There may be present different kinds of cartilage with varying functions and structures.

Cartilage is used to make the jaws and the entire skeleton. Hence, the shark ‘skulls’ are referred to as chondrocraniums.

How different is the shark teeth?

Shark teeth are created from dentin tissues similar to our teeth, being calcified. The tissue however is quite denser, stronger and fossilizes well.

You may easily come across sharp tooth necklaces at tourist curio shops across the globe. They are rather assumed to be a conservation threat for this species.

As a matter of fact, they are created from dead sharks’ fossilized teeth. Generally, white teeth are derived from a shark that is recently dead. On the other hand, darker teeth are mostly fossilized.

The ‘skin teeth’ (dermal denticles) present in shark rather than true scales are quite toothlike. They are prone to fossilize.

So, how many bones does a shark have? No, they don’t!

John C. Crawford

I am John C. Crawford. I am the founder of EnjoyWiki.com. I am a professional freelancer, blogger and content writer. I have several blogs and EnjoyWiki.com is one of them. I always love to share my experience on my blogs.