# Blue shark (*Prionace glauca*)

Canonical page: https://creaturedata.com/animals/blue-shark  
Data as of: 2026-11-11

The blue shark (Prionace glauca) is a fish in the sharks and rays subgroup, belonging to the family Carcharhinidae in the order Carcharhiniformes. It was named by (Linnaeus, 1758) and is the species of the genus Prionace in the class Elasmobranchii. The IUCN Red List global assessment places the blue shark in the Near Threatened (NT) category, which is not an IUCN threatened category. Other English names for the blue shark are great blue, blue whaler, great blue shark and blue whaler shark.

## Quick facts

| Fact | Value |
|---|---|
| Weight | Not recorded |
| Length | up to 3.49 m |
| Lifespan | Not recorded |
| Longest recorded lifespan | 20 years |
| Main food | Not recorded |
| Habitat | Not recorded |
| Young per litter or clutch | 29.9 – 33 |
| Age at maturity | 4 years – 7 years |
| Reproduction | Live birth |
| Migration | Migratory |
| Conservation status | Near Threatened (IUCN) |
| Countries on record | Not recorded |

## Classification

- kingdom: Animalia
- phylum: Chordata
- class: Elasmobranchii
- order: Carcharhiniformes
- family: Carcharhinidae
- genus: Prionace
- species: *Prionace glauca* (Linnaeus, 1758)

Synonyms: *Carcharhinus glaucus*, *Carcharhinus macki*, *Carcharias aethiops*, *Carcharias glaucus*, *Carcharias gracilis*, *Carcharias hirundinaceus*, *Carcharias pugae*, *Carcharias rondeletii*, *Carcharinus glaucus*, *Galeus thalassinus*, *Glyphis glaucus*, *Hypoprion isodus*, *Isurus glaucus*, *Prionace mackiei*, *Prionacea glauca*, *Squalus adscensionis*, *Squalus caeruleus*, *Squalus glaucus*, *Squalus rondeletii*, *Thalassinus rondeletii*, *Thalassinus rondeletti*, *Thalassinus rondelettii*, *Thalassinus rondelettii*, *Thalassorhinus vulpecula*

## Common questions

### What is the scientific name of the blue shark?

The scientific name of the blue shark is Prionace glauca.

### What kind of animal is the blue shark?

The blue shark is a fish in the sharks and rays subgroup. It belongs to the family Carcharhinidae, order Carcharhiniformes and class Elasmobranchii.

### Is the blue shark endangered?

No, the blue shark is listed as Near Threatened (NT) in the IUCN Red List global assessment, which is not an IUCN threatened category.

### Who named the blue shark?

The blue shark was named by (Linnaeus, 1758).

### What are other names for the blue shark?

The blue shark is also called great blue, blue whaler, great blue shark and blue whaler shark.

## Sources

- [Catalogue of Life eXtended Release](https://www.checklistbank.org/dataset/316691), CC BY 4.0, 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life (2026). Catalogue of Life eXtended Release, version 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgzlf
- [Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org), per file (CC0 / public domain / CC BY green, CC BY-SA amber, anything else not displayed), 2026-11-11. Wikimedia Commons contributors. Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org (each file credited to its author under its own licence).
- [Sharkipedia: a curated open access database of shark and ray life history traits](https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.6656525), CC BY 4.0, 1.0-2022-06-17. Mull, C.G., Pacoureau, N., Pardo, S.A. et al. (2022) Sharkipedia: a curated open access database of shark and ray life history traits and abundance time-series. Scientific Data 9: 559. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41597-022-01655-1. Data: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.6656525
- [Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org), CC0 1.0, 2026-11-11. Wikidata contributors. Wikidata. https://www.wikidata.org (data retrieved via the Wikidata Query Service).
- [Wikipedia (English)](https://en.wikipedia.org), CC BY-SA 4.0, 2026-11-11. Wikipedia contributors. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. https://en.wikipedia.org (text under CC BY-SA 4.0; each block names its article and revision).

Cite as: Blue shark (Prionace glauca). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/blue-shark