# Great white shark (*Carcharodon carcharias*)

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

The great white shark (Carcharodon carcharias) is a species in the family Lamnidae, order Lamniformes. Recorded adults weigh about 1.09 t and live up to 73 years. It has been recorded in 42 countries, most often in Australia, United States and New Zealand. Its IUCN Red List status is Vulnerable.

## Quick facts

| Fact | Value |
|---|---|
| Weight | 1.09 t |
| Length | Not recorded |
| Lifespan | 73 years |
| Main food | fish, Teuthida, seabird, sea turtle, Pinnipedia, dolphin and 46 more |
| Habitat | Not recorded |
| Gestation | 548 days |
| Young per litter or clutch | Not recorded |
| Conservation status | Vulnerable (IUCN) |
| Recorded in | 42 countries |

## Classification

- kingdom: Animalia
- phylum: Chordata
- class: Elasmobranchii
- order: Lamniformes
- family: Lamnidae
- genus: Carcharodon
- species: *Carcharodon carcharias* (Linnaeus, 1758)

Synonyms: *Carcharias atwoodi*, *Carcharias carcharias*, *Carcharias lamia*, *Carcharias maso*, *Carcharias productus*, *Carcharias sulcidens*, *Carcharias verus*, *Carcharias vorax*, *Carcharias vulgaris*, *Carcharodon albimors*, *Carcharodon caifassi*, *Carcharodon capensis*, *Carcharodon etruscus*, *Carcharodon productus*, *Carcharodon rondeletii*, *Carcharodon smithi*, *Carcharodon smithii*, *Carcharodon sulcidens*, *Carharodon carcharias*, *Squalus caninus*, *Squalus carcharias*, *Squalus lamia*, *Squalus vulgaris*

## Where it has been recorded

Countries with openly licensed sighting records on GBIF (records in brackets). Recorded sightings, not a definitive range.

Australia (11041), United States (2736), New Zealand (1691), South Africa (178), New Caledonia (148), Norfolk Island (129), Mexico (73), Germany (50), United Kingdom (47), Vanuatu (43), Japan (39), Canada (24), Tonga (21), Benin (10), Italy (9), Netherlands (9), Portugal (9), France (7), Réunion (6), Türkiye (6), French Southern Territories (5), Belgium (4), Spain (4), Tunisia (4), Brazil (3), Algeria (3), Greece (3), Malta (3), St. Pierre & Miquelon (3), Mayotte (3), Indonesia (2), Chile (1), Costa Rica (1), Ecuador (1), Ghana (1), Equatorial Guinea (1), Mozambique (1), Namibia (1), French Polynesia (1), Senegal (1), Suriname (1), Taiwan (1)

## Common questions

### How big is the great white shark?

An adult great white shark weighs 1.09 t, according to values recorded on Wikidata.

### Where does the great white shark live?

The great white shark has openly licensed sighting records from 42 countries on GBIF. The most records come from Australia, United States, New Zealand, South Africa and New Caledonia. These are recorded sightings, not a definitive range.

### Is the great white shark endangered?

The great white shark is listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List, meaning it faces a high risk of extinction in the wild.

### What does the great white shark eat?

Its recorded foods include fish, Teuthida, seabird, sea turtle, Pinnipedia and dolphin, among 52 on record.

### How long does the great white shark live?

The great white shark has a recorded lifespan of 73 years.

### How long is the great white shark pregnant?

The recorded gestation period is 548 days.

### What kind of animal is the great white shark?

The great white shark (Carcharodon carcharias) belongs to the family Lamnidae in the order Lamniformes.

## Sources

- [GBIF Backbone Taxonomy](https://www.gbif.org/dataset/d7dddbf4-2cf0-4f39-9b2a-bb099caae36c), CC BY 4.0, live API 2026-11-11. GBIF Secretariat. GBIF Backbone Taxonomy. Checklist dataset https://doi.org/10.15468/39omei accessed via GBIF.org.
- [Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org/), CC0 1.0, live API 2026-11-11. Wikidata contributors. Wikidata, the free knowledge base.
- [GBIF occurrence aggregates (CC0 and CC BY records only)](https://www.gbif.org/occurrence/search), CC BY 4.0, live API 2026-11-11. GBIF.org occurrence search, country facet counts restricted to CC0 1.0 and CC BY 4.0 records.
- [Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org/), Per file, live API 2026-11-11. Wikimedia Commons contributors. Licence and creator recorded per file.
- [English Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/), CC BY-SA 4.0, live API 2026-11-11. Wikipedia contributors. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia.

Cite as: Great white shark (Carcharodon carcharias). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/great-white-shark