The Jaws of Death; Sharks as Predator, Man as Prey

by Xavier Maniguet

• ISBN13: 9781585743193
• ISBN10: 1585743194
• Format: Trade Paper
• Copyright: 2001-06-01
• Publisher: The Lyons Press

Summary

The Jaws of Death is a book that documents the truth about sharks and - through the examination of case histories - about gruesome shark attacks on man. Also read about how sharks are essential to the equilibrium of the marine biotope and how sharks are the only animals that have undergone virtually no evolutionary changes in millions of years. Learn about the fascinating history and physiology of sharks, and discover the many uses of sharks in science and medicine.

Author Biography

Xavier Maniguet, best known as a survival specialist, is also a doctor of medicine, a pilot, and a parachutist.

Table of Contents

Preface	9	(2)
Beulah Davis
Acknowledgements	11	(2)
Introduction	13	(2)
Statistics Versus Myths
Total numbers	15	(2)
Preconceived ideas	17	(6)
An Historical Account
Devil sharks and god sharks	23	(5)
From myth to symbol	28	(2)
The reasons for fascination	30	(2)
Sharks and the media	32	(3)
A chapter of history	35	(10)
An Extraordinary Machine
Devilish jaws	45	(1)
A flawless set of teeth	45	(3)
Sequences of a bite	48	(1)
Feeding, appetite and digestion	49	(6)
Exceptional sensory organs	55	(1)
Hearing	56	(1)
Smell	57	(3)
The lateral line	60	(2)
The pit organs: ``taste buds'' on the back	62	(2)
An extraordinary eyesight	64	(5)
The visual system of the Great White Shark	69	(1)
The ampullae of Lorenzini: a unique organ	70	(4)
Hydrodynamics and performance	74	(1)
An organism for hydrodynamism	75	(6)
A predator with two gears	81	(1)
Variations and adaptations	81	(2)
Respiration	83	(4)
Peculiarities and Curiosities
The ``Great White Death''	87	(2)
Innocent giants	89	(2)
The Tiger Shark: the ``hyena of the seas''	91	(1)
Display swimming of the Grey Reef Shark	92	(6)
Motivation for an attack	98	(3)
The markings of the Oceanic White-tip: lure or identity badge?	101	(1)
Attacking nuclear submarines	102	(1)
The shark's companions	103	(4)
Attacks: Instructive Dramas
Accursed places	107	(8)
Shipwrecks: sites of unsuspected carnage	115	(16)
Boats are not always safe from attack	131	(6)
Determined attacks	137	(7)
Remarkable attacks	144	(2)
Courageous victims	146	(2)
Heroic rescuers	148	(5)
A painless torture	153	(2)
Post-mortem of an attack	155	(4)
Some impossible statistics	159	(4)
Preventive measures against sharks	163	(1)
Prevention through education	164	(7)
Prevention through facilities	171	(7)
Passive on-the-spot protection	178	(5)
Aggressive on-the-spot protection	183	(3)
Conclusion	186	(3)
Fact and Speculation
Captivity and adaptability	189	(2)
The shark's brain	191	(1)
Reproduction and maturation	192	(1)
Reproduction	192	(4)
Maturation	196	(1)
Social behaviour and ecology of sharks	196	(2)
Theories of evolution and the shark	198	(3)
1001 Uses of a Shark
The shark as police-informer	201	(5)
The shark as alibi	206	(3)
Ecology and the fishing industry	209	(5)
The shark as a game fish	214	(6)
Shark cuisine	220	(1)
The shark memento	221	(1)
Sharkskin	222	(1)
The shark in pharmacy and in surgery	223	(1)
The shark and the cinema	223	(1)
The shark virility test	224	(3)
The Other Jaws of Death
Piranhas: myth or reality?	227	(2)
The Killer Whale	229	(1)
Crocodiles: fearsome predators	230	(5)
Elementary precautions	235	(1)
Barracudas: innocent animals unjustly accused	236	(3)
Directory	239	(76)
Glossary	315	(2)
Bibliography	317