Texas Gulf Coast Fishing

Lemon Shark

LEMON SHARK - Negaprion brevirostris

Description: It is known as the lemon shark because, at certain depths, light interacting with the local seawater can give this shark a tanned and yellow pitted appearance, much like the surface of a lemon. The skin is pale yellow-brown to grey and lacks any distinctive markings. This provides perfect camouflage when swimming over the sandy seafloor in its coastal habitat. It has a flattened head with a short, broad snout, and the second dorsal fin is almost as large as the first.
Where Found: NEARSHORE and OFFSHORE The lemon shark is found mainly along the subtropical and tropical parts of the Atlantic and Pacific coasts of North and South America, and around Pacific islands. They are often accompanied by remoras. They like tropical water, and like to stay at moderate depths.
Diet: Lemon sharks are bottom dwellers. They have very poor eyesight and cannot see well to find their food, but are equipped with extremely sensitive and accurate magnetic sensors in the nose. Its usual diet consists of fish.
Size: The longest lemon shark recorded was 13 ft. long, but they are usually 8–10 ft.