A sharks senses have evolved with sharks to become an effective and efficient means of survival. It is interesting to note that because sharks have no other predator but man, they are not equipped with some of the defensive mechanisms of other sea creatures.

A sharks senses work in unison to make it an efficient predator that can sense injured animals and fish from several miles away. Experiments have been done on some shark's to get an idea of how the senses of a shark work together with interesting results. When a shark's nose is stopped up it has significant difficulty hunting, even though the sense of smell is not the primary sense. The entire body of a shark plays an important role in the effectiveness of the senses and it's ability to hunt and survive.

Many sharks have light sensitivity that is ten times more sensitive than humans. They can see objects from 70-100 feet away. Depending on whether the shark is a bottom feeder or surface feeder, they may have extremely good eyesight or very poor eyesight. Researchers have found that Lemon sharks can detect colors and that they prefer bright shiny colors.

The senses of hearing and smell also are very efficient. When one drop of blood was put in a 2,000 gallon tank of water, a shark sensed it and came to the location where the blood was dropped. Studies show that sharks will travel hundreds of miles in reaction to the smell of blood. A lot of sharks are drawn to the smell of chemicals in the gut and can be found in areas where there are sewage outfalls. Sharks also smell directionally and will smell an odor through the nostril where the scent is coming from first. Openings in the shark head lead directly to the inner ear and they can hear very low frequencies up to . 6 miles away.

Sharks have two senses that humans do not share. These senses give the shark an advantage as a predator and provide it with the ability to detect injured animals from a great distance. First, the head of the shark contains Ampullae of Lorenzine. These are small ampules that are electroreceptors. All animals, including humans emit an electromagnetic field. When injured, the electromagnetic field changes slightly. The receptors detect this change from several miles away and attracts the shark to the prey.

Another unique sense is the Lateral Line on the shark. The tubes run on either side of the body and have a lot of resemblance to ear canals. There are tiny, sensitive hairs in the canals that response to any vibration in the water up to ten feet away. When an animal or human is splashing in the water or disabled, the frequency can be as low as 25-50Hz and the Lateral Line will detect the vibrations and direct the shark to the location.

All of these senses combined create a perfect predatory machine that can detect and respond to the slightest disruption in the water. When all of the sharks senses indicate an injured animal or possible prey, the shark is able to move quickly and react appropriately.