虎鲨得名于身体两侧深色的垂直条纹，让人想起老虎身上的斑纹。事实上，随着虎鲨年龄的增长，这些条纹会逐渐消失，因此它们不能作为每个个体的识别特征。年轻的虎鲨身上有黑色斑点，最终会合并成条纹。因此，这个物种有时被称为豹鲨或斑点鲨。虎鲨有一个结实的头和身体，虽然尾部较窄。鼻子是钝的，有点圆。

虎鲨是最大的鲨鱼种类之一，无论在长度还是重量上。成熟时雌性比雄性大。虎鲨的平均长度为10-14英尺，但最大的个体可能长达18英尺，体重超过1400磅。它们通常独居，但有时会聚集在食物充足的地方

虎鲨是最容易无缘无故攻击人类的鲨鱼种类之一，因此被认为是世界上最危险的鲨鱼之一。虎鲨是“三大”攻击性鲨鱼之一，与大白鲨和牛鲨并列。大白鲨是唯一一种攻击和杀死的人比虎鲨还多的物种。

为什么虎鲨如此危险？ 首先，它们生活在人类游泳的水域，所以遇到深海鲨鱼的几率比遇到深海鲨鱼的几率要大。其次，虎鲨又大又壮，很容易在水中制服一个人。第三，虎鲨有专门用来剪断食物的牙齿，所以它们造成的破坏是毁灭性的。

另外虎鲨是独居的夜间捕食者，它们对任何特定的猎物都没有偏好。它们几乎会吃掉它们遇到的任何东西，包括鱼、甲壳类动物、鸟类、海豚、鳐鱼，甚至其他鲨鱼。虎鲨也有吃掉海湾和入口处漂浮的垃圾的倾向，有时会导致它们的死亡。虎鲨也以腐肉为食，在它们的胃里发现了人类的尸体。

They'll eat just about anything they encounter, including fish, crustaceans, birds, dolphins, rays, and even other sharks.Tiger sharks also have a tendency to consume garbage floating in the bays and inlets, sometimes leading to their demise.Tiger sharks also scavenge for carrion, and human remains have been found in their stomach contents.

人类对鲨鱼的威胁远远大于鲨鱼对人类的威胁。由于人类活动和气候变化，世界上近三分之一的鲨鱼和鳐鱼濒临灭绝。鲨鱼是食物链顶端的捕食者——食物链顶端的消费者——它们数量的减少会改变海洋生态系统中生物的平衡。

Humans pose a far greater threat to sharks than sharks do to humans. Almost a third of the world's sharks and rays are endangered and at risk of extinction, due mainly to human activities and climate change. Sharks are apex predators―top-of-the-food-chain consumers―and their decline can tilt the balance of organisms in marine ecosystems.

根据国际自然与自然资源保护联盟(IUCN)的说法，尽管它们被认定为“濒临灭绝”的物种，但虎鲨目前还没有濒临灭绝的危险，。虎鲨经常是副渔获物的受害者，这意味着它们是在无意中被渔民旨在捕捞其他物种的捕鱼行为中被杀死的。

Tiger sharks are not endangered at this time, according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN), although they are identified as a species "near threatened." Tiger sharks are frequent victims of bycatch, meaning they're killed unintentionally by fishing practices intended to harvest other species.

在它们生活范围内的一些地方，人们还以商业和娱乐的方式捕捞它们。尽管禁止猎取虎鲨的鳍，但仍有许多虎鲨死于非法猎取。

They're also fished commercially and recreationally in some parts of their range. Although finning tiger sharks is prohibited, it's likely a number of tiger sharks still die from illegal fin harvesting.