Thresher sharks use their impressive tails to stun lots of prey at once with sharp overhead "tail slaps", scientists have confirmed.
The sharks' scythe-like tails make up half the length of their body, so it had long been suspected that the animals used them as hunting weapons.
Footage of the predators using their tail to stun and kill sardines has finally confirmed this.
The findings are reported in the journal Plos One.
Dr Simon Oliver, founder of the Thresher Shark Research and Conservation Project and a researcher based at University of Liverpool, filmed pelagic thresher sharks as they hunted off Pescador Island in the Philippines.
The vast sardine shoals there are feeding hot spots for these sharks, and the researchers encountered and filmed more than 60 occasions where the sharks "bullwhipped" their tails in an effort to kill the fish.
"It was a massively exciting moment for me to come across his behaviour," said Dr Oliver.
Back in 2010, another team managed to film the common thresher shark swiping at and making contact with tethered bait using their tails.
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