Whitetip Reef Sharks are closely associated with coral reefs in clear, tropical waters. This species is primarily nocturnal, sheltering in caves by day, often communally. Maximum size is around 200 cm total length (TL), but adults are very rare over 160 cm. Maturity is attained at about 105 cm TL, although a mature male of 95 cm TL and a pregnant female of 102 cm TL have been recorded in the Maldives (Anderson and Ahmed 1993). Mating has been recorded in the wild by Tricas and Le Feuvre (1985) and pups are born at 52-60 cm TL after a gestation period of at least five months. Litter size has been recorded as 2-3 in Madagascar (Fourmanoir 1961, Last and Stevens 1994) and 1-5 elsewhere (Randall 1977, Last and Stevens 1994). Growth is slow in the wild, estimated at 2.1-4.2 cm year^-1 (Randall 1977), and it may attain sexual maturity at eight to nine years and live to about 16 years (Randall 1977, Smith et al. 1998). Generation length is estimated to be 12.25 years (Randall 1977).

The Blue Shark is oceanic and pelagic, found from the surface to depths of 1000 m (Weigmann 2016). It occasionally occurs close inshore when the continental shelf is narrow. This species reaches a maximum size of about 380 cm total length (TL). About 50% of males in the Atlantic are sexually mature by 218 cm, although some may reach maturity as small as 182 cm TL. Females are sub-adult from 173-221 cm TL and fully mature from 221 cm TL (Pratt 1979), although pregnant specimens as small as 183 cm TL have been recorded from the eastern Pacific (Williams 1977).Blue Sharks are placentally viviparous, producing litters averaging about 35 pups (maximum recorded 135) after a gestation period of 9-12 months. At birth, pups measure 35-50 cm TL. Reproduction has been reported as seasonal in most areas, with the young often born in spring or summer (Pratt 1979, Stevens 1984, Nakano 1994) although the periods of ovulation and parturition may be extended (Hazin et al. 1994). Ageing studies suggest a longevity of about 20 years with males maturing at 4-6 and females at 5-7 years (Stevens 1975, Cailliet et al. 1983, Nakano 1994). Smith et al. (1998) estimated the intrinsic rate of population increase at MSY to be 0.061.Generation length is estimated to be 10.5 years based on study of Blue Shark in the Northwest Pacific by Nakano (1994).

The Tiger Shark inhabits reef and slope habitats, is sometimes associated with coral reefs, and occasionally makes longer-distance excursions into the pelagic zone. It regularly dives to depths greater than 1000 m and has been noted to move hundreds to thousands of kilometres (Holmes et al. 2014, Werry et al. 2014). It attains a maximum size of at least 550 cm total length (TL). In the north-west Hawaiian Islands, Tiger Sharks with a precaudal length of 200 cm were estimated to be about five years old and one of 300 cm was about 15 years old (De Crosta et al. 1984). Branstetter et al. (1987) estimated that initial growth was very fast, but that the rate of growth of very large animals is 5-10 cm year^-1; thus, individuals of 400-450 cm TL would be 20-25 years of age. Branstetter et al. (1987) reported a maximum age of 45-50 years. Smith et al. (1998) estimated the intrinsic rate of increase of a tiger shark population at MSY to be 0.043 year^-1. Randall (1992) summarised that the size at maturity of males is 226-290 cm TL and females 250-350 cm TL.The Tiger Shark is the only species in the Carcharhinidae family that is lecithotrophic viviparous. Litter sizes are large, with between 10-82 embryos reported from a single female. Mean litter sizes of 30-35 have been reported (Tester 1969, Bass et al. 1975, Simpfendorfer 1992). The size at birth is 51-90 cm TL (Randall 1992, Simpfendorfer 1992). Clark and von Schmidt (1965) reported the gestation period as 13-16 months. There have been few other estimates of gestation period. Mating is reported to take place in the Northern Hemisphere in spring, with pupping the following spring to summer. Mating occurs before full-term females have given birth to young, indicating that litters are produced every two years or less. Based on data from the North West Atlantic, generation length is estimated at 17.5 years (Natanson et al. 1999).

The Blacktip Reef Shark is found in inshore habitats, especially associated with coral reefs and sandy areas to depths of 100 m. Adults reach total lengths of up to 180 cm total length (TL) and mature between 90-110 cm TL (Compagno 1984, Stevens 1984, Last and Stevens 1994). Size at birth has been reported at 30-52 cm TL. Information on reproductive biology is limited and conflicting. Blacktip Reef Sharks are viviparous with a yolk sac placenta and give birth to 2-4 pups (usually four) (Compagno 1984, Lyle 1987, Last and Stevens 1994). Data from Sudan suggests a 9 month gestation period in the region (I. Elhassan pers.comm. 09/02/2017). The only age data available is from Australia (Chin et al. 2013). Females mature at 8.5 years and reach a maximum age of at least 15 years. This yields a generation length of 11.5 years. During the breeding season (November and March (Mourier and Planes 2013).

The Oceanic Whitetip is one of the most widespread sharks, ranging across entire oceans in tropical and subtropical waters. It is an oceanic-epipelagic shark, usually found far offshore in the open sea in waters 230 m deep, between about 30'°N and 35'°S in all oceans; it is normally found in surface waters, although it has been recorded to 1082 m (Weigmann 2016). It has occasionally been recorded inshore, but is more typically found offshore or around oceanic islands and areas with narrow continental shelves (Compagno et al. 2005, Last and Stevens 1994). Temperatures of waters in which it regularly occurs are 18 to 28'°C, with water above 20'°C preferred.The Oceanic Whitetip Shark attains a maximum size of 400 cm total length (TL) (Stevens 1984, Seki et al. 1998). Males mature at about 168 to 198 cm TL and females at 170 to 200 cm TL (Seki et al. 1998). This species is born at about 57 to 77 cm TL after a gestation period of about 10 to 12 months (Compagno et al. 2005), with 15 foetuses recorded from a female of 245 cm TL from the Red Sea (Gohar and Mazure 1964) and larger females appear to carry more young, although there may be regional variation (Bass et al. 1973). Development is viviparous and embryos have a yolk sac placenta that attaches to the uterine wall of the mother (Bigelow and Schroeder 1948). Seki et al. (1998) studied the age, growth and reproduction of the Oceanic Whitetip Shark in the north Pacific. Both male and female Oceanic Whitetip Sharks matured at 4 to 5 years of age. In the western North Pacific, the size and age at first maturity was 190-193.4 cm TL and 8-5-8.8 years for females and 172-194.4 cm TL and 6.8-8.9 years for males (Joung et al. 2016). Smith et al. (1998) investigated the intrinsic rebound potential of Pacific sharks and found that oceanic whitetips to be among a moderate rebound potential, because of their relatively fast growth and early maturation. The species is estimated from a lifetable model created based on the WCPFC stock assessment to have a generation length of 16.4 years (M. J. Juan Jordá unpubl. data - based on the WCPFC stock assessment).

The Bull Shark occurs in inshore and offshore waters, usually near the bottom, from the surfline to a depth of at least 152 m (Ebert et al. 2013). This species is euryhaline, with nursery areas in rivers, although within the Arabian Seas region, neonates have been recorded in areas without rivers and estuaries (Jabado et al. 2016). It attains a maximum size of about 340 cm total length (TL) with males mature at around 157-226 cm TL and females mature around 180-230 cm TL (Ebert et al. 2013, Jabado et al. 2016, Moore et al. 2012). Females produce litters of 1-13 every second year (Smith 1997) and size at birth is about 55-81 cm TL (Ebert et al. 2013). Ageing data from northern Australia indicate that females mature around 10 years and reach a maximum of at least 27 years (Tillett et al. 2011). Based on these data, generation length is estimated at 18.25 years.

This species occurs in coastal waters on continental and insular shelves. Its maximum size is 165 cm total length (TL) (Weigmann 2016). Females are mature by at least 131 cm TL and demonstrate placental viviparity with litters of 4-6 embryos. In the northwestern Gulf, there is evidence that parturition occurs in spring when embryos are 35-51 cm TL. Further records of the Smoothtooth Blacktip Shark from the western Arabian Sea indicate that adults are present in this region throughout the year.No ageing data are available for the Smoothtooth Blacktip Shark. Generation length is estimated to be 8.25 years based on the Spottail Shark from Australia, which has a similar maximum size. The Spottail Shark matures at 2-3 years and reaches a maximum age of 14 years (Davenport and Stevens 1988).

The Silky Shark is a circumtropical oceanic and coastal-pelagic species, most often found near the edge of continental and insular shelves at depths of 200 m or more in the epipelagic zone. It is often associated with islands, insular slopes and deepwater reefs preferring warmer waters (about 23'°C) although it also occurs from the surface to a depth of at least 500 m offshore (Last and Stevens 2009). Smaller sharks are often found in coastal nurseries and adults further offshore over deeper water. In pelagic habitats, the Silky Shark is often associated with drifting materials on the surface (Filmalter et al. 2013). Life history parameters of this species vary considerably among regions (Clarke et al. 2015a). The maximum size varies from 229-371 cm total length (TL) with a size at maturity from 180-230 cm TL for males and 180-246 cm TL for females (Clarke et al. 2015). Age at maturity ranges from 5-13 years for males and 6-15 years for females with maximum ages of 8-28.6 years for males and 11-35.8 years for females. The Silky Shark gives birth to live young, averaging 5-7 pups per litter with a range of 2-18 pups per litter (Clarke et al. 2015a). Size at birth ranges from 65-81 cm TL and the gestation period ranges from 9-12 months depending on location and study (Clarke et al. 2015). Anderson and Ahmed (1993) report juveniles of 56-63 cm TL captured off the Maldives. Fecundity increases with increasing size of females, and females give birth every 1-2 years (Clarke et al. 2015). In the eastern Arabian Sea, total length and age at maturity for males is 201-“223 cm (TL) and 10 years, and 224-“231 cm and 11 years for females (Varghese et al. 2016). Generation length is estimated to be 15 years based on the average age of maturity of females as 9 years old and average maximum age of 21 years old (excluding outliers). This is in close agreement with generation length of 16 years in Dulvy et al. (2008).

The Spinner Shark occurs in inshore and offshore waters on continental and insular shelves to depths of 75-100 m (Jabado and Ebert 2015). It is most common shallower than 30 m and also occurs in bays and off river mouths. It attains a maximum size of about 283 cm total length (TL). Males mature at ~177 cm TL, females mature at around 159 cm TL (Jabado and Ebert 2015). The species has an 11-15 month gestation period and is placentally viviparous, producing 3-20 pups (usually 7-11) with a size at birth of 48-55 cm TL. The reproductive cycle is two years (Castro 1993). There are no age data from the region, but generation length is suspected to be around 13 years based on work in South Africa (Allen and Wintner 2002) suggesting maturity at about 9 years and maximum age at about 17 years. In the Tasman Sea, age at maturity for females and males was 10.1 and 8.5 years, respectively (Geraghty et al. 2015).

The Pigeye Shark occurs in inshore and offshore waters to depths of at least 100 m and juveniles are known to occur in estuaries (Ebert et al. 2013). Data on the life history of this species in the region is limited. Maximum reported size is 303 cm TL (Henderson et al. 2004). Size at birth is 57-72 cm TL, males mature at 195-227 cm TL, females mature at less than 195-224 cm TL (Moore et al. 2012, Ebert et al. 2013). Litter sizes reported include 11 from the Red Sea (I. Elhassan unpubl. data). In other parts of the range, litter sizes range from 3-13 (Bass et al. 1973). In Australia, females mature at 13 years and live to more than 30 years, while males mature at 12 years and live to more than 26 years (Tillett et al. 2011). Based on these data, generation length is estimated at 21.5 years.