Abstract
The jaws of elasmobranchs are suspended from the chondrocranium and jaw protrusion during feeding enhances prey capture. While all elasmobranchs have the same mode of tooth attachment and continuous replacement, tooth form varies considerably and includes conical piercing teeth, blade-like slicing teeth and rounded crushing teeth. Most sharks are high-level predators which use biting and suction to capture prey. Three species feed by filtering plankton from the water. Suction, achieved by expansion of the buccal and hyoid cavities as the mouth opens, is most important in bottom-feeding species. Variations in form of shark teeth reflect different functions, such as grasping, slicing or crushing. Shark dentitions are usually heterodont with tooth form varying between different regions of the jaws. Heterodont dentitions combine different functions, such as grasping and cutting, or grasping and crushing.
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