SHARK VS SHARK

Common threshervsLemon shark

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

LivingAlopias vulpinus×LivingNegaprion brevirostris
QUICK VERDICT

Common thresher is about 2.5× longer by these reference values.

Common thresher uses a 7.6 m upper reference, compared with 3 m for Lemon shark. Common thresher's weight reference is about 1.36× heavier.

01

ON THE SAME SCALE

Human. Bus. Whale.
Pick your reference.

RELATIVE LENGTH · 0–24 METERS
ACommon thresherreported to 7.6 m / 24.9 ft
BLemon sharkcommonly to 3 m / 10 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.

MeasureCommon thresherLemon shark
Length referencereported to 7.6 m / 24.9 ftcommonly to 3 m / 10 ft
Weight referencerecorded over 340 kg / 750 lbreported to 250 kg / 551 lb
Bite forceNo dependable maximum foundUnknownNo dependable maximum foundUnknown
HabitatTemperate and tropical open watersShallow subtropical coasts and mangroves
DietSchooling fishes and squidFishes, rays and crustaceans
03

WHAT THE DATA CAN SAY

Size is not the whole animal.

Length and weight

Common thresher is represented by reported to 7.6 m / 24.9 ft; Lemon shark by commonly to 3 m / 10 ft. Length comparisons can exaggerate body bulk because the tail is exceptionally long. The values are upper-end figures, not a typical adult profile.

Bite evidence

Common thresher: Its hunting performance cannot be reduced to jaw force. Lemon shark: No standardized maximum is available for a fair cross-species comparison.

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

Much of its length is tail, which it uses to stun prey. Decades of field research make this one of the best-studied coastal sharks.

04

TRACE THE CLAIMS

Sources and limits.

Common thresherFlorida MuseumLemon sharkFlorida MuseumHow we standardize comparisonsRead the methodology →