Some sharks are seemingly named after birds:

  * great white shark: _hoojirozame_ 頬白鮫 from _hoojiro_ (meadow bunting)

  * sandbar shark: _mejirozame_ 目白鮫 from _mejiro_ (white-eye)

  * blue shark: _yoshikirizame_ 葦切鮫 from _yoshikiri_ (reed warbler)

Maybe a great white does have white cheeks, but I'm not sure if a sandbar
shark really has white eyes, and I see no connection between blue sharks and
reed. Is this just a coincidence?

On another note, the triplewart footballfish (箕作柄長提灯鮟鱇 _mitsukuri enaga
chouchin ankou_ ) seems to be named after the long-tailed tit ( _enaga_ )
which is equally baffling.
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question
etymology animals
Why are some sharks named after birds?
It's an interesting question, but as far as I googled, I was not able to track
any evidence that links sharks with the birds' (names).

For examples, popular "exceptions" from yours are . . . **[甚平鮫,
Jinbeizame,](http://gogen-allguide.com/si/jinbeizame.html)** in English, whale
sharks was named after because of their body appearances and patterns look
like that of 甚平，a Japanese haori, and another popular exceptions are
小判鮫，kobanzame, in English, suckishes, are named because their **[rays look
like that of 小判 (old minted gold
)](http://www.aqua.stardust31.com/suzuki/kobanzame-ka/kobanzame.shtml)**

**[Kotobank says the following about
目白鮫:](http://kotobank.jp/word/%E3%83%A1%E3%82%B8%E3%83%AD%E3%82%B6%E3%83%A1\(%E7%9B%AE%E7%99%BD%E9%AE%AB\)-1210887)**

> 眼が白っぽい瞬膜（しゆんまく）におおわれることに由来した名称。

Translated:

> Their eyes are covered by the white nictitating membrane,

**[Then when I went to Wiki about what a "nictitating membrane"
is](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nictitating_membrane)** ,

I found out that sharks and birds commonly have full nictitating membranes . .
.

As the Wiki page says,

> Some reptiles, birds, and sharks have full nictitating membranes;

So that I think some of sharks have this kind of "full nictitating membrane"
like birds, and I thought that is the reason why, I guess.
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answer