Which shark has dark vertical stripes resembling a tiger?

The shark with dark vertical stripes resembling a tiger is the tiger shark.

The tiger shark’s scientific name is Galeocerdo cuvier. Its common name comes from the dark bars and stripes along its back and sides, especially prominent in juveniles. As the shark matures, those markings often fade, so large adults may look less obviously “tiger-striped” than young individuals.

Tiger sharks live in tropical and warm-temperate seas and are often active at night. They are broad-headed, powerful predators with one of the widest known diets among sharks, eating fish, crustaceans, squid, sea turtles, seabirds, marine mammals and even other sharks. Their countershaded bodies help camouflage them from above and below.

The name can cause a common mix-up with the sand tiger shark. These are entirely different species and belong to different families. The tiger shark is the only living species in the genus Galeocerdo, while the sand tiger shark belongs to Carcharias. Tiger sharks also have five gill slits, like most modern sharks.