Home > Illustration > Wildlife > Ocean Animals > Sharks & Rays > Silvertip Reef Shark

Silvertip Reef Shark

Silvertip Reef Shark line art illustration (click image to enlarge)

Silvertip Reef line art illustration (click image to enlarge)

Artist's notes:

The Silvertip Reef Shark was completed on 7.3.2010. Sharks are fun to draw. But one thing I have to keep in mind, when working from reference photos the filtering effect of the ocean can distort the coloration of the animal, as they're often believed to be blue but as yet I've yet to see a shark that wasn't grey, brown, beige or some other muted earth tone. The drawing is based on a photo by Lee Root.

Information about the Silvertip Reef Shark:

The Silvertip Reef Shark is a species of requiem shark, which are typically migratory, live-bearing sharks of the warm oceans. These large predators are generally found worldwide, in patchy areas usually around coral reefs. Silvertip sharks can grow up to nearly ten feet long (3 meters) but usually measure in the area of  6 to 8 feet (2.0–2.5 meters) Like other sharks, the Silvertip feeds on bony fish, cephalopods like octopus and squid, smaller sharks and rays. While encountering one while diving can be a stressful experience, studies have shown that the sharks are usually just curious and will not normally attack humans, although attacks have been recorded, none have been fatal. Due to overfishing, especially due to the wasteful practice of catching them for sharkfin soup, this species is considered threatened.