Locating food is a critical skill for any animal, and sharks have turned it into a fine art. Like most fish, they use sensory cells in lateral lines on their flanks to detect pressure waves caused by other creatures passing nearby.

But it’s their legendary ability to detect the presence of food particles that makes sharks so noteworthy. Most sharks can discern the tiniest quantities of chemicals as much as 500 metres from their source. Special organs in the nares (the shark equivalent of nostrils, usually located on the sides of the snout) pick up even the most dilute traces of potential food in the current. These organs are so sensitive that they can even determine whether the left or right nare is receiving the most concentrated flow of the chemical and thus hone in on its source with impressive accuracy.

Eyesight is another important means of locating prey. A shark’s eyes are typically ten times more sensitive to light than human eyes, and species that hunt fast-moving creatures, such as fish or seals, have been shown to have especially good vision. They can also see colours and some species have been shown to be attracted to shiny metallic objects.

As if these senses weren’t enough, sharks are also very sensitive to magnetic fields, and research has shown that many species use the Earth’s own magnetic fields to navigate. Some can even detect the tiny magnetic fields emitted by other fishes nearby, giving them yet another means of finding their food.