How do constantly swimming sharks ever rest? Scientists just figured it out

[Still Waters]

Even predators can't stay awake all the time. But sharks, those sleek hunters of the deep, don't exactly advertise when they're taking a power nap.

A strange behavior has given them up, though. Marine biologists have discovered that sharks 'surf' ocean currents in a conveyor belt configuration, allowing them to take turns resting.

The revelation came when a research team led by Yannis Papastamatiou of Florida International University was studying the nocturnal hunting behavior of grey reef sharks (Carcharhinus amblyrhynchos) at Fakarava Atoll in French Polynesia.

These sharks never stop swimming for their entire lives. They need to keep moving in order to extract enough oxygen with their gills to keep them alive, so stationary resting, like the way other animals rest, is out of the question.

https://www.sciencealert.com/sharks-take-turns-surfing-currents-to-catch-a-break