Knowledge and understanding of the shark population in Mobile Bay and the northern Gulf of Mexico has grown immensely over the past decade. Now, educators can bring that research to their classrooms.

Dauphin Island Sea Lab‘s Discovery Hall Programs (DHP), Mississippi State University Extension Services and Marcus Drymon’s Marine Fisheries Ecology Lab at Mississippi State have collaborated to create a poster highlighting 10 years of shark science. The poster is a companion to a new Sea Lab (DISL), Mississippi State (MSU) and Mississippi-Alabama Sea Grant Consortium educational lesson.

“The poster was created to dispel myths about the common coastal sharks,” DHP Marine Educator Greg Graeber said. “For example, the sand shark. There is no such thing as a sand shark, and the poster explains why it is so hard to tell these common coastal sharks apart from one another.”

The poster highlights some of the more charismatic sharks that call the north-central Gulf home, such as the tiger shark and a variety of hammerheads. There are also a few off-the-beaten-path, deeper-water species that occasionally come up farther offshore.

“What’s cool about it is it’s a quick and easy basic reference guide for shark identification. Many people, even saltwater anglers, have problems differentiating these species,” Graeber said. “It also shows size comparisons that demonstrate that not all sharks are giant monsters. Some of those ‘baby’ sharks you’ve seen may actually be an adult.”

Click here to download your copy of the poster.