Skip to content
FastestThings

Fish & Sharks

Oceanic whitetip

Waller's Table 4 reprints Papastamatiou et al. 2018: an oceanic whitetip burst of 10.3 mph (4.6 m/s). The sustained speed on that row is 1.3 mph to 1.6 mph (0.6–0.7 m/s).

An oceanic whitetip can swim 10.3 mph (4.6 m/s), a verified measurement.

Also known as Carcharhinus longimanus, oceanic whitetip shark
Post on X (opens in a new tab)

Top speed

Published as 4.6 m/sPublished as 4.6 m/sPublished as 4.6 m/s

Waller et al. 2023, Journal of Fish Biology, Table 4. Oceanic whitetip, Carcharhinus longimanus, speedometer fixed to the fish, length 7.2 feet to 9.4 feet (2.2–2.85 m), sustained 1.3 mph to 1.6 mph (0.6–0.7 m/s), burst 10.3 mph (4.6 m/s). Reference Papastamatiou et al. 2018. The figure is the 10.3 mph (4.6 m/s) burst. The sustained band is not a separate record.

VerifiedJournal of Fish Biology (opens source in a new tab)

In context

  • 44% of Usain Bolt's 100 m world-record paceSourced · Usain Bolt, 100 m in 9.58 s. World Athletics, Berlin 2009. Averaged over the race
  • 16% of a cheetah's timed top speedSourced · Cheetah, 29 m/s. Sharp 1997, mean of three timed runs over 201.2 m
  • A football field in 20 sConstant · American football field, 100 yd (91.44 m)

Worked out from the sourced figure above, which stays the ranked number.

Quick answers

People also ask

How fast can an oceanic whitetip swim?

An oceanic whitetip can swim 10.3 mph (4.6 m/s), a verified measurement.

Is that figure claimed or verified?

Oceanic whitetip is labeled Verified. Independently measured and published, for example in a peer-reviewed study or with certified timing.

What is the source?

The figure cites Journal of Fish Biology, “Oceanic whitetip burst in the large-pelagic speed table.”

Where does Oceanic whitetip rank?

Oceanic whitetip is 6th of 10 on Fastest Fish & Sharks.

Mechanism

Why it's so fast

Waller's Table 4 reprints Papastamatiou and colleagues 2018: an oceanic whitetip, Carcharhinus longimanus, burst of about 10.3 mph (4.6 m/s). The sustained speed on that row is 1.3 mph to 1.6 mph (0.6 to 0.7 m/s).

Species
Carcharhinus longimanus
Burst
10.3 mph (4.6 m/s)
Sustained
1.3 mph to 1.6 mph (0.6–0.7 m/s)

  1. A burst and a cruise

    The ranked number is the 10.3 mph (4.6 m/s) burst from a speedometer study, reprinted in Waller's table. The same row's sustained speed, 1.3 mph to 1.6 mph (0.6 to 0.7 m/s), is what the shark does the rest of the time. Burst and cruise are not the same list.

  2. Reprinted, and named

    The measurement is Papastamatiou 2018, via Waller. It is not the white shark's 15.0 mph (6.7 m/s) tailbeat estimate and not the mako's 11.2 mph (5.02 m/s) logger burst. The species is the oceanic whitetip.

Provenance

Every measurement

Claimed, measured and official figures side by side, each with its source. The ranked figure is marked.

  1. 16.6km/h10.3mph4.6m/s8.9knRanked figure

    Waller et al. 2023, Journal of Fish Biology, Table 4. Oceanic whitetip, Carcharhinus longimanus, speedometer fixed to the fish, length 7.2 feet to 9.4 feet (2.2–2.85 m), sustained 1.3 mph to 1.6 mph (0.6–0.7 m/s), burst 10.3 mph (4.6 m/s). Reference Papastamatiou et al. 2018. The figure is the 10.3 mph (4.6 m/s) burst. The sustained band is not a separate record.

    1.3 mph to 1.6 mph (0.6–0.7 m/s) is the sustained speed in the same cell. The comparison uses 10.3 mph (4.6 m/s).

    Verified
    Journal of Fish Biology (opens source in a new tab)

Reference

Specs

Species
Carcharhinus longimanus
Burst
10.3 mph (4.6 m/s)
Method
Speedometer, via Waller Table 4

Context

Background

Waller and colleagues reprint a speedometer burst of 10.3 mph (4.6 m/s) for the oceanic whitetip, from Papastamatiou and colleagues 2018. The same row gives length 7.2 feet to 9.4 feet (2.2–2.85 m) and a sustained speed of 1.3 mph to 1.6 mph (0.6–0.7 m/s). The figure is 10.3 mph (4.6 m/s), qualifier verified, because the table says the original study measured it with a speedometer.

The sustained band is extra detail. Table 4 says its values keep the decimal places of the original studies. A muscle-contraction estimate is a different method and is not substituted here.

Head to head

Compare Oceanic whitetip

Open the speed race

Spot a wrong number?

Every report is read by a person, and corrections are dated on the page.