shark
Blacktip reef shark.
Carcharhinus melanopterus · also: Blacktip (not the pelagic blacktip)
The shallow-water shark most snorkellers meet first — small, skittish, and unmistakable with jet-black fin tips dipped as if in ink. It patrols turquoise lagoons and reef flats in water sometimes barely deep enough to cover its back. Naturally timid, it bolts from swimmers far more often than it approaches.
Size
~1.6 m
Weight
Up to ~24 kg.
Diet
Small reef fishes, crustaceans, cephalopods, occasionally sea snakes.
Lifespan
~15–25 years.
Depth
Surface to ~75 m; favours very shallow reef flats and lagoons.
Reproduction
Live-bearing; 2–4 pups, gestation ~8–9 months.
Snorkel or dive
Snorkel / shallow water
Best season
Year-round
Conservation
Vulnerable
How to recognise it
Conspicuous black tips on all fins; bold black-on-white first dorsal; tan-brown back.
Behaviour
Shy and skittish; cruises shallow sandy flats, lagoons and reef edges, dorsal often breaking the surface.
Where to see it in the Maldives
Ubiquitous in shallow lagoons and house-reef flats at virtually every resort island.
Conservation
Inshore and artisanal fisheries, bycatch; heavy reliance on shallow habitats.
IUCN · Vulnerable
Watch them responsibly
Move slowly in the shallows; no chasing or cornering against the reef, never feed — they spook easily.
Juveniles nursery in ankle-deep lagoon water — many travellers' first-ever wild shark.
In parts of its range it can reproduce by parthenogenesis (virgin birth), with no male present.
Collective noun: a shiver of sharks
Want to dive with blacktip reef shark?
Our Maldives specialists match you to the right atoll, season and resort.
Sightings are typical, not guaranteed — encounters vary with season and conditions.