Photos of feeding sharks bust common misconceptions
Photographer and conservationist Tanya Houppermans has bravely captured images of a sand tiger shark feeding on a huge bait ball.
With Tanya taking photos from beneath the sharks, the images show the top half of the shark’s body diving into thousands of fish.
Tanya took the remarkable images in waters off the coast of Morehead City in North Carolina.
She explained that in all her time diving, she had never witnessed a bait ball as big as the one she encountered in these photographs.
“I am always amazed by how incredibly graceful and beautiful sharks are,” she said.
“Here is an animal that has been around in one form or another for a few hundred million years, and is so perfectly suited for its environment that you can’t help but be awe-struck seeing one in the wild.”
“They will look at you and watch you; sometimes their curiosity will motivate them to come in for a closer look, and other times they’ll err on the side of caution and retreat.”
Tanya hopes these images will disprove misconceptions about sharks, saying that are not creatures to be feared.
There have been no reported human fatalities caused by a sand tiger shark.
“One of the biggest misconceptions surrounding sharks is that they will seek out and attack people who happen to be in the water nearby. This is simply untrue,” she said.
“Sharks are often quite cautious and timid around people. They will typically retreat if they feel threatened.”
Scroll through the gallery above to see the remarkable photographs.
Image credit: Tanya Houppermans