Tiger shark
Galeocerdo cuvier (Péron & Lesueur, 1822)
NTNear Threatenedsharks and rays
The tiger shark (Galeocerdo cuvier), also called the spotted shark, is a fish in the sharks and rays subgroup, belonging to the family Galeocerdonidae. It is placed in the genus Galeocerdo, the order Carcharhiniformes and the class Elasmobranchii.
Quick facts about the tiger shark
The species was named by (Péron & Lesueur, 1822) and is listed as Near Threatened (NT) on the IUCN Red List, which is not an IUCN threatened category.
- Weight
- Not recorded
- Length
- Not recorded
- Lifespan
- Not recorded
- Main food
- Not recorded
- Habitat
- Not recorded
- Young per litter or clutch
- Not recorded
- Active
- At night (nocturnal)src for Active
- Conservation status
- Near Threatened (IUCN)src for Conservation status
- Countries on record
- Not recorded
Photos of the tiger shark
Only freely licensed photos are shown. Each carries its creator and licence.
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Where does the tiger shark live?
Not recorded
What is the tiger shark?
The tiger shark (Galeocerdo cuvier) is a species of ground shark, and the only extant member of the genus Galeocerdo and family Galeocerdonidae. It is a large predator, with females capable of attaining a length of over 5 m (16 ft 5 in). Populations are found in many tropical and temperate waters, especially around central Pacific islands. Its name derives from the dark stripes down its body, which resemble a tiger's pattern and fade as the shark matures.
The tiger shark is a solitary, mostly nocturnal hunter. It is notable for having the widest food spectrum of all sharks, with a range of prey that includes crustaceans, fish, seals, birds, squid, octopuses, sea turtles, sea snakes, dolphins, and even smaller sharks. It also has a reputation as a "garbage eater", consuming a variety of inedible, man-made objects that linger in its stomach. Tiger sharks have only one recorded natural predator, the orca. It is considered a near-threatened species because of finning and fishing by humans.
The tiger shark is second only to the great white in recorded fatal attacks on humans, but these events are still exceedingly rare.
From the Wikipedia article “Tiger shark” (en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Tiger_shark&oldid=1382520128), by Wikipedia contributors, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0). This block is kept separate from our own text.
Is the tiger shark endangered?
The tiger shark is listed as Near Threatened on the IUCN Red List: it is close to qualifying as threatened.
- LCLeast Concern
- NTNear Threatened
- VUVulnerable
- ENEndangered
- CRCritically Endangered
- EWExtinct in the Wild
- EXExtinct
Category via Wikidata (CC0). Find the full assessment on the IUCN Red List. See all Near Threatened species.
How is the tiger shark classified?
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- classElasmobranchii
- orderCarcharhiniformes
- familyGaleocerdonidae
- genusGaleocerdo
- SpeciesGaleocerdo cuvier (Péron & Lesueur, 1822)
Synonyms Carcharias fasciatus, Carcharias hemprichii, Galeocerda cuvier, Galeocerdo arcticus, Galeocerdo arcticus, Galeocerdo cuvieri, Galeocerdo fasciatus, Galeocerdo obtusus, Galeocerdo rayneri, Galeocerdo tigrinis, Galeocerdo tigrinus, Galeus cepedianus, Galeus maculatus, Squalus arcticus, Squalus cuvier
Other names and names in other languages (123)
- Spotted sharkEnglish
- Yee nawanAcehnese
- TierhaaiAfrikaans
- JarjurArabic
- قرش الببرArabic
- قرش النمرArabic
- قرش ببريArabic
- Hiu macanbcn
- Mungsing jarabcn
- Тыгровая акулаBelarusian
- Tauró tigreCatalan
- Merauraucal
- 鼬鮫Chinese
- 鼬鲛Chinese
- Žralok tygříCzech
- Morgi rhesogWelsh
- Kamat lorenddg
- TigerhaiGerman
- ފެމުނު މިޔަރުDivehi
- Καρχαρίας τίγρηςGreek
- tintoreraSpanish
- tiburón tigreSpanish
- Tintorera tigreSpanish
- Fume dadiEwe
- tiikerihaiFinnish
- Qio sagaFijian
- KpohouaFon
- Requin-tigreFrench
- Mangeur d'hommesFrench
- Requin tigreFrench
- Requin tigre communFrench
- Requin-demoiselleFrench
- Nshon alonteIrish
- ભુવરGujarati
- પટટરીGujarati
- PiyuiWayuu
- NiuhiHawaiian
- Mano pa'eleHawaiian
- כריש טיגריHebrew
- כריש טיגריסיHebrew
- tigriscápaHungarian
- Cucut macanIndonesian
- Hiu harimauIndonesian
- TígrisháfurIcelandic
- Squalo tigreItalian
- イタチザメJapanese
- イッチョーJapanese
- Hiu omasJavanese
- ಪುಲ್ಲಿಯKannada
- 뱀상어Korean
- tigrinis ryklysLithuanian
- BemasoMalagasy
- Akio karyMalagasy
- VorotseMalagasy
- ToikiMāori
- NgutukaoMāori
- കല്ലംMalayalam
- കേതാലന്Malayalam
- വൊരിമിയരുMalayalam
- കല് വാരിMalayalam
- वाघबीरMarathi
- Ruhiamrv
- Ikan yuMalay
- Chiow suarMalay
- Jerung tenggiriMalay
- Yu gilingMalay
- Yu manisMalay
- Yu tenggiriMalay
- TijgerhaaiDutch
- Anzone kusuNzima
- TintoleroPapiamento
- TintoreroPapiamento
- Tribon innocentePapiamento
- Tribon tigerPapiamento
- mochelasPalauan
- rekin tygrysiPolish
- żarłacz tygrysiPolish
- Cação-jaguaraPortuguese
- Cação cabeça-chataPortuguese
- Cação-jaguaráPortuguese
- Cação-tintureiroPortuguese
- Marracho tigrePortuguese
- Tubarão-tigrePortuguese
- Tubarão-tintureiraPortuguese
- Ma`o patapataray
- ma'o patapataray
- Тигровая акулаRussian
- акула тигроваяRussian
- Žralok tigríSlovak
- morski tigerSlovenian
- NaiufiSamoan
- OlolSerer
- TigerhajSwedish
- TsakaSwahili
- AmzaniSwahili
- புலிச்சுறாTamil
- உளுவன் சுராTamil
- வள்ளுவன் சுராTamil
- ௨ள்ளுவன் சுராTamil
- ma'o toretoreTahitian
- కెతులమ్Telugu
- కురంగు సొర్రాTelugu
- వుల్లువన్ సొర్రాTelugu
- Hiu lorenTetum
- ฉลามเสือThai
- TagutuTokelauan
- KanaelauvakaTokelauan
- TenifaTongan
- 'Anga takanevaTongan
- Kaplan KöpekTurkish
- kaplan kopekbaligiTurkish
- kaplan köpekbalığıTurkish
- Te kiliTuvalu
- Te tababaTuvalu
- Акула тигроваUkrainian
- Тигрова акулаUkrainian
- Tchissouèndjivif
- YanakhorWolof
- Ama kolikoliwww
- 爛沙Chinese
- 虎沙Chinese
- 鳥鯊Chinese
- 鼬鯊Chinese
Catalogue of LifeWikipediaiNaturalistITISTAXREFWikidataWoRMSIUCN Red List
Relatives of the tiger shark
Other species in the same genus Galeocerdo.
CompareTiger shark vs Galeocerdo aduncusTiger shark vs Galeocerdo clarkensisTiger shark vs Galeocerdo eaglesomeiTiger shark vs Galeocerdo platycuspidatum
Common questions
Each answer is written from the sourced facts on this page, and only where they hold the answer.
What kind of animal is the tiger shark?
The tiger shark is a fish in the sharks and rays subgroup. It belongs to the family Galeocerdonidae in the order Carcharhiniformes.
What is the scientific name of the tiger shark?
The scientific name of the tiger shark is Galeocerdo cuvier, in the genus Galeocerdo.
Is the tiger shark endangered?
No, the tiger shark is listed as Near Threatened (NT) in the global IUCN Red List assessment, which is not an IUCN threatened category.
Who named the tiger shark and when?
The tiger shark's scientific name carries the authority (Péron & Lesueur, 1822).
What is another name for the tiger shark?
The tiger shark is also called the spotted shark.
What class does the tiger shark belong to?
The tiger shark belongs to the class Elasmobranchii, within the phylum Chordata and the kingdom Animalia.
Sources and how to cite this page
Data as of 2026-11-11. How this page is put together.
- Catalogue of Life eXtended Release · 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 · 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). - Wikidata · CC0 1.0 · 2026-11-11
Wikidata contributors. Wikidata. https://www.wikidata.org (data retrieved via the Wikidata Query Service). - Wikipedia (English) · 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).
Embed a card for this animal on your own site
Copy this code. The card shows the photo with its credit, key facts and a link back to this page.
CreatureData. (2026). Tiger shark (Galeocerdo cuvier). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/tiger-shark
“Tiger shark (Galeocerdo cuvier).” CreatureData, 2026, https://creaturedata.com/animals/tiger-shark.
@misc{tiger_shark_2026,
title = {Tiger shark (Galeocerdo cuvier)},
author = {{CreatureData}},
year = {2026},
url = {https://creaturedata.com/animals/tiger-shark},
note = {Data as of 2026-11-11}
}