SHARK VS SHARK

HybodusvsNurse shark

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

ExtinctHybodus hauffianus×LivingGinglymostoma cirratum
QUICK VERDICT

Nurse shark is about 1.23× longer by these reference values.

Nurse shark uses a 3.08 m upper reference, compared with 2.5 m for Hybodus. A clean mass ratio is not shown because at least one weight is not reliably reconstructed.

01

ON THE SAME SCALE

Human. Bus. Whale.
Pick your reference.

RELATIVE LENGTH · 0–24 METERS
AHybodusabout 2.5 m / 8.2 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.

MeasureHybodusNurse shark
Length referenceabout 2.5 m / 8.2 ftrecorded to 3.08 m / 10.1 ft
Weight referenceNot reliably reconstructedlarge-adult reference about 110 kg / 243 lb
Bite forceNo defensible estimate usedUnknownNo dependable maximum foundUnknown
Timeabout 250–100 million years agoWarm reefs, flats and mangroves
DietFishes and hard-shelled preyFishes, rays, mollusks and crustaceans
03

WHAT THE DATA CAN SAY

Size is not the whole animal.

Length and weight

Hybodus is represented by about 2.5 m / 8.2 ft; Nurse shark by recorded to 3.08 m / 10.1 ft. The genus spans a long interval and multiple species; this is a comparison reference. Length is a recorded maximum; mass is a rounded adult reference.

Bite evidence

Hybodus: Tooth form suggests diet, not an exact force. Nurse shark: Suction performance is central to feeding and is not captured by bite-force rankings.

Living versus extinct

At least one animal is known from fossils. Fossil length, weight and bite estimates depend on which living analogues and scaling equations researchers choose.

Ecology changes the matchup

It was a shark-line relative, not a member of a living shark order. A small mouth and powerful suction suit its bottom-feeding life.

04

TRACE THE CLAIMS

Sources and limits.

HybodusNatural History MuseumNurse sharkFlorida MuseumHow we standardize comparisonsRead the methodology →