A Blacktip Reef Shark (Carcharhinus melanopterus) glides through shallow ocean ponds like a missile, sleek and made for speed.
Blacktip reef sharks are one of the most common sharks found in Pacific Ocean. This one was photographed at West Hawaii Explorations Academy (WHEA) Public Charter School’s educational ponds in Kailua Kona on the Big Island of Hawaii.
These small sharks reach an average of 5 and 1/2 feet long and are quite skittish when it comes to human contact. Their typical meal consists of bony fishes, cephalopods and crustaceans.
