Blue shark
Prionace glauca
Valid name (FishBase; confirmed in Eschmeyer's Catalog of Fishes and WoRMS, October 2026).
- English
- Blue shark
- Scientific
- Prionace glauca
- Dhivehi
- އަނދުން މިޔަރުAndhun miyaru
- Group
- Sharks
- Maximum size
- Up to about 4 m (total length); commonly 3.4 m; max. published weight 205.9 kg (FishBase); MRS 1997 gives max. 3.8 m
- Depth and habitat
- Open ocean, near the surface and in mid-water, recorded from 0 to 1082 m (usually 1 to 220 m); also enters brackish water
- IUCN status
- NT · Near ThreatenedNear Threatened (NT), assessed 2018CITES Appendix II
Description
A slim, graceful shark with a long conical snout, large eyes and very long, narrow pectoral fins, deep indigo blue above, bright blue on the sides and white below. It is one of the widest-ranging sharks, migrating across whole oceans, and prefers cooler water.
In the Maldives
Dhivehi name andhun miyaru (MRS 1997). MRS notes it is not very common in the Maldives and that 95% of blue sharks caught there were males. Sharks are fully protected in the Maldives (since 2010).
Sources
- fishbase.se /summary/Prionace-glauca.html
- fao.org /4/AD471E/AD471E00.htm
- dv.wikipedia.org /wiki/އަނދުން_މިޔަރު
- commons.wikimedia.org /wiki/File:Tiburón_azul_(Prionace_glauca),_canal_Fayal-Pico,_islas_Azo
Dhivehi name source: M.R.S. (1997) Fishes of the Maldives (FAO/BOBP MAG/21) gives 'Andhun miyaru' (Latin form). Thaana from the Dhivehi Wikipedia article 'އަނދުން މިޔަރު' (derived from the MRS 1997 Dhivehi edition); it matches the Latin form.