Reef Fish Sharks Sharks or their close relatives have been present in our oceans for more than 400 million years. They play an important role in the marine environment, similar to that of other top order predators such as birds of prey or big cats.
Many people have a fear of sharks that is disproportionate to the risk they pose.
In reality, sharks have much more to fear from humans than we do from them. Some shark populations are at risk from exploitation as a fishery resource. At least 7,000 tonnes of shark are landed in Australia for sale each year and catches of some species have declined since the 1980s, indicating a potential decline in shark numbers.