Do Sharks Have Tongues?

Although they are much different from the tongues that humans possess, it is true that sharks do have tongues. However a shark’s tongue is not called a “tongue”. Instead it is called basihyals. The basihyal is located on the floor of the shark’s mouth and is basically nothing more than a small, stout that has a vague tongue like piece of cartilage. In most sharks the basihyal is relatively immovable this in turn generally makes it useless. However in other species of sharks their basihyal is larger, more flattened, moveable, and often used to efficiently suck up prey.