| Mackerel sharks Temporal range: | |
|---|---|
| Great white shark Carcharodon carcharias | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Chondrichthyes |
| Order: | Lamniformes |
| Family: | Lamnidae J. P. Müller and Henle, 1838 |
| Extant genera | |
| |
| Synonyms | |
|
"Carcharodontidae" (Gill, 1832) | |
The Lamnidae are the family of mackerel sharks known as white sharks. They are large, fast-swimming predatory fish found in oceans worldwide.
The name of the family is formed from the Greek word lamna, which means "fish of prey", and was derived from the Greek legendary creature, the Lamia.