SHARK VS SHARK

Bull sharkvsNurse shark

Length, weight and bite evidence—plus context from a human, city bus and blue whale. Every number below carries its uncertainty with it.

LivingCarcharhinus leucas×LivingGinglymostoma cirratum
QUICK VERDICT

Bull shark is about 1.30× longer by these reference values.

Bull shark uses a 4 m upper reference, compared with 3.08 m for Nurse shark. Bull shark's weight reference is about 2.9× heavier.

01

ON THE SAME SCALE

Human. Bus. Whale.
Pick your reference.

RELATIVE LENGTH · 0–24 METERS
ABull sharkreported to 4 m / 13 ft
BNurse sharkrecorded to 3.08 m / 10.1 ft
REFAdult human1.8 m · about 80 kg

Length bars use upper comparison values and do not show body depth, tail proportion or typical adult size. A long thresher tail, for example, does not equal whale-shark body mass.

02

THE NUMBERS

Side by side.

MeasureBull sharkNurse shark
Length referencereported to 4 m / 13 ftrecorded to 3.08 m / 10.1 ft
Weight referencereported to 316.5 kg / 698 lblarge-adult reference about 110 kg / 243 lb
Bite force170–5,914 N across studied sizes and bite pointsModeledNo dependable maximum foundUnknown
HabitatCoasts, estuaries and freshwaterWarm reefs, flats and mangroves
DietFish, rays, turtles and other sharksFishes, rays, mollusks and crustaceans
03

WHAT THE DATA CAN SAY

Size is not the whole animal.

Length and weight

Bull shark is represented by reported to 4 m / 13 ft; Nurse shark by recorded to 3.08 m / 10.1 ft. The 4 m figure is a reported maximum; typical mature animals are smaller. Length is a recorded maximum; mass is a rounded adult reference.

Bite evidence

Bull shark: The upper value is a theoretical posterior bite for the largest specimen in a 73–285 cm study series—not a universal adult bite. Nurse shark: Suction performance is central to feeding and is not captured by bite-force rankings.

Living versus extinct

Both species are living, but record-sized individuals are rare. These upper references should not be read as normal adult size.

Ecology changes the matchup

Its freshwater range is exceptional among large coastal sharks. A small mouth and powerful suction suit its bottom-feeding life.

04

TRACE THE CLAIMS

Sources and limits.

Bull sharkHabegger et al. (2012) + Florida MuseumNurse sharkFlorida MuseumHow we standardize comparisonsRead the methodology →