Shark Week Sketch Jam

Inspired by an art group of a similar name on DeviantART, this is a blog to celebrate and educate about the incredible animals that are sharks. With the past few years of Discovery’s Shark Week focusing on mostly shark attacks and Great Whites, I believe we need to know more about these often endangered species and why they deserve to not be culled for human safety when we are encroaching in their territory, or to be harvested for human consumption such as shark fin soup. For each Shark Week each year, I will create a list of sharks (and rays and skates) to read about and draw for each day of the week. Submissions will be open for two weeks, the week of Shark Week and the week after for any stragglers who still wish to post their drawings. ~ Metal-Gear-Felidae / Feels-And-Things

[vetrinanicoleart]

All done with #sharkweeksketchjam ! Thank you so much @sharksketchjam for hosting the event! It was incredibly fun 😊

[sharkweeksketchjam]

Is the Shark Week Sketch jam happening again this year?

I don’t honestly know this year, I never got much interest nor could I keep up drawing this any year really. I could set up a list and post submissions if at least you are willing to participate but it’s been just me the past few years.

[sharkweeksketchjam]

I’m unsure how many more sharks I will draw as I have some more pressing and important works to complete in a short time, but have this weird little wobbegong! Tried out a different way of shading which needs more work. No background for this one.

The spotted wobbegong (Orectolobus maculatus) is an ambush predator that hides in wait and sucks in unsuspecting prey. They’re classified as near threatened in their range by the IUCN.

[paleotopresent-deactivated20210]

STETHACANTHUS

Sharks have an extraordinary evolutionary record dating back over 400 million years. They have been an eyewitness to evolution in the seas and still patrol waters all over the globe today. 

Stethacanthus, otherwise known as the ‘ironing board shark’, first appeared around 380 million years ago during the Devonian period and continued to thrive for the next 60 million years. Stethacanthus mostly had an outline similar to modern sharks although they had a distinctive anvil-shaped dorsal fin with small sharp spikes covering the crest. The function of this odd fin is unknown but it is only present in males, so it most likely played a role in courtship and competition. 

Stethacanthus was a reasonable sized shark for its time, yet it was smaller in comparison to most modern sharks being around 70cm to a metre in length. Its size probably restricted its diet to fish, cephalopods and possibly even trilobites that inhabited the reefs. Stethacanthus also had other features uncommon in other sharks, the tail fin was almost symmetrical compared to most other sharks which have a larger upper lobe. They also had distinctive fin whips projecting from the pectoral fins. Once again the function of these fin whips is unknown as they are absent in modern sharks but they likely played a role in mating. The small stature of this shark may give the impression that it was a agile, deadly swimmer but this is unlikely to be the case. The long fin whips and rough dorsal scales likely hindered streamlined locomotion through the water making them slow-moving.

Stethacathus is not only infamous for its strange morphology, but because a handle of fossils are so brilliantly preserved allowing us to confidently reconstruct the whole animal and even identify its sex. This is a rarity amongst sharks, usually only their teeth survive the tests of time as their bodies are composed mainly of cartilage which is quick to decompose after death.

[sharkfactoftheday]

Stethacanthus was a small ancient shark from around 323 mya. It is one of the earliest examples of a shark ancestor with dermal denticles; however its most interesting feature is by far the flat-topped dorsal fin with raised scales. 

[sharkweeksketchjam]

As an apology for now drawing and posting each day - and also for relevant fun, I will be streaming a playthrough of Giant Squid/505 Games’ ABZÛ Saturday the 29th at 1pm Eastern. I’ll post the stream link as I load everything up and I’ll wait for people to start showing up to start playing.

It’s a short game, only about 2-4 hours long depending on how much one meditates to look at all the life in each part, but it is massively beautiful in appearance and in score. Maybe I’ll even be able to catch the arctic part this time around.

[sharkweeksketchjam]

Going LIVE on Twitch now!

https://www.twitch.tv/pamuyablu

[sharkweeksketchjam]

As an apology for now drawing and posting each day - and also for relevant fun, I will be streaming a playthrough of Giant Squid/505 Games’ ABZÛ Saturday the 29th at 1pm Eastern. I’ll post the stream link as I load everything up and I’ll wait for people to start showing up to start playing.

It’s a short game, only about 2-4 hours long depending on how much one meditates to look at all the life in each part, but it is massively beautiful in appearance and in score. Maybe I’ll even be able to catch the arctic part this time around.

[ohnoocean]

MEGAMOUTH SHARK

[sharkfactoftheday]

The majority of megamouth discoveries have been in the equatorial regions of the oceans, but not enough have been sighted for scientists to determine their exact range.

[shark-ray-blog]

The elusive Megamouth shark, Megachasma pelagios, cruising the waters at night.

Scientists believe that Megamouth sharks not only swim with their huge mouths open to consume prey such as krill, but also attract prey to their open mouth with bioluminescence. 

Photo courtesy of Discovery’s Shark Week 2014

[morbidology]

Being stranded in the middle of the ocean is a terrifying thought, mainly because of the creatures lurking below. One such creature many people are afraid of is sharks, although many species are completely harmless. The megamouth shark is extremely rare with only 61 specimens being sighted over the years and only three being caught on film. The megamouth shark was first discovered in 1976 when it became entangled on an anchor of a Navy ship. In March 2016, a 16 foot megamouth shark was caught off the coast of Japan. Aptly named, the megamouth shark can open their mouth, which consists of small sharp teeth, to 4′3″ wide. This shark may look scary to some people, but it feeds on plankton.

[sharkfactoftheday]

Our knowledge about megamouth sharks is likely somewhat biased, as the majority of it is based off of dead, ill, or injured specimens. 

[sharkfactoftheday]

The maximum size of a megamouth shark is at least 17 ft (5.2 m) and may be larger.

[derlediklerim-deactivated202012]

Blue Shark by ortwinkhan

[humanslikeme]

Getting close… by ortwinkhan

[carcharhinic]

Shocked Shark by Will Clark / Underwater Photographer of the Year 2016

“This juvenile blue shark was the first to arrive at our boat after an hour of chumming. We were alerted to its presence by the bobbing of a small buoy which had fresh mackerel tied to it. I leaned over the side of the boat with my camera housing not quite fully submerged as the skipper tried to coax the shark nearer to the boat. He got the blue very close to me, and then just at the last moment he whipped the bait out of the water, which got this reaction from the shark.”

[aticketplz]

2016年最後のサメモリーは、ヨシキリザメとの初遭遇でした。

全世界のサメでも最多の個体数を誇り、宮城県では盛んに水揚げされ、生活のあらゆるものに利用されているヨシキリザメですが、外洋棲のために飼育されても水族館では深海ザメ並みに短命。このほっそりした独特のフォルム、ヨシキリザメ色としか言いようがない肌、私がサメにハマり始めた頃からずっと、生きているのをみることを憧れていた種です。

この仙台うみの杜水族館は、その土地柄もあり開業前からヨシキリザメにこだわって長期飼育にチャレンジしてきた施設です。惜しみない努力と多くの犠牲を経て、現在200日を超えて二尾の飼育に成功されています。これは同館の最長記録。腸洗いなどの珍しい行動も観測されているとのこと。実際水槽の前では職員の方が長い時間丁寧に観察&記録されていました。まだまだ試行錯誤なのでしょう。私がいったときの二尾は189日目と169日目。両方体長2m弱。あちこちにある傷が痛々しいですが、今後は投薬治療も検討中だそうです。これは、開催中の特別展「世界一美しいサメ ヨシキリザメ展」のパネルにありました。

そう!!世界一美しいんですよ。絶対に。生で、しかも泳いでいるいきものが発していることを思えば、奇跡としか思えない色してるんですよ。ヨシキリブルーなんですよ。ブルーシャークブルーなんですよ。もう、興奮でシャッターきりまくるしかなくて、あとでピントが合っていてほっとしたものでした。またひとつサメにまつわる夢が叶い、水族館に携わる方々への感謝が増えました。

@仙台うみの杜水族館