Ecuador is home to around 40 shark species, making it the nation with the highest number of sharks, especially in the Galapagos region. Despite this, human-shark interactions are infrequent and so far have been non-fatal.
The sharks commonly seen in Ecuador’s waters are the dusky shark, three species of hammerhead – great, scalloped, and scoophead, and three species of reef shark – blacktip, gray, and whitetip.
List of the Different Types of Sharks in Ecuador
| Species | Maximum Size | Aggressiveness |
Bigeye Thresher Shark |
11-16 feet | Not aggressive |
| Blacktip Shark | 5-8 feet | Moderately aggressive |
Blacktip Reef Shark |
3-4 feet | Moderately aggressive (if provoked) |
Blue Shark |
6-11 feet | Not aggressive |
Bonnethead Shark |
4-5 feet | Not aggressive |
| Brown Smooth-hound | 1.5-2.5 feet | Not aggressive |
Bull Shark |
7-12 feet | Highly aggressive |
| Crocodile Shark | 2.5-4 feet | Not aggressive |
Dusky Shark |
9 -12 feet | Not aggressive (until provoked) |
Galapagos Shark |
9.8-12 feet | Highly aggressive |
Galapagos Bullhead Shark |
3.5-3.6 feet | Not aggressive |
| Great Hammerhead Shark | 15-20 feet | Highly aggressive |
Gray Reef Shark |
4-5 feet | Highly aggressive |
Lemon Shark |
9-10 feet | Not aggressive |
Longfin Mako Shark |
12-14 feet | Highly aggressive |
| Mexican Horn Shark | 3-5 feet | Not aggressive (unless provoked) |
Nurse Shark |
7-8 feet | Not aggressive |
| Oceanic Whitetip Shark | 10-13 feet | Highly aggressive |
| Pacific Angel Shark | 4-5 feet | Not aggressive |
| Pacific Sharpnose Shark | 3.14-4.24 feet | Not aggressive |
Pelagic Thresher Shark |
13-18 feet | Not aggressive |
Scalloped Hammerhead Shark |
9-12 feet | Moderately aggressive |
| Scoophead Hammerhead Shark | 2.95-4.92 feet | Not aggressive |
| Sharptooth Smooth-hound | 2-2.1 feet | Not aggressive |
Shortfin Mako Shark |
6.5-9.5 feet | Highly aggressive |
| Sicklefin Smooth-hound | 5-5.7 feet | Not aggressive |
Silky Shark |
7-10 feet | Highly aggressive |
| Smalltail Shark | 3.5-4.5 feet | Not aggressive |
| Smooth Hammerhead Shark | 8-12 feet | Not aggressive (but are potentially dangerous) |
Tiger Shark |
10-14 feet | Highly aggressive |
Whale Shark |
18-32 feet | Not aggressive |
| Whitenose Shark | 4.8-4.92 feet | Not aggressive |
Whitetip Reef Shark |
3-5.5 feet | Moderately aggressive (only when provoked) |
Recent Cases of Shark Attacks in Ecuador >>
FAQs
1. Have there been shark attacks in Ecuador?
While sightings occur at a regular frequency, there have only been 11 recorded unprovoked shark attacks. All of these were non-fatal.
2. Can I go shark diving in Ecuador?
Yes, there are several spots where trained divers accompany you as you go snorkeling or diving with sharks.
