Size : Maximum total length at least 95 cm; males about 50 em at maturity, females about 60 cm at maturity; young born at about 23 cm.

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1 click for previous page Habitat and Biology : A common temperate to tropical dogfish of the continental shelves and upper slopes, at or near the bottom at depths of 16 to at least 440 m and probably deeper; often found in large schools. Off West Africa caught on muddy bottom in water of 11 to 18 0 C and salinities of 36 ppt (16 to 255 m depth). Ovoviviparous, number of young 3 to 4 per litter. Eats a variety of bony fishes, including denticids, mackeral, and percichthyids, as well as crabs, lobsters, and octopi. Size : Maximum total length at least 95 cm; males about 50 em at maturity, females about 60 cm at maturity; young born at about 23 cm. Interest to Fisheries : Common in the temperate to tropical eastern Atlantic and Mediterranean and fished there with bottom trawls, gillnets and line gear. Utilized fresh, dried salted and smoked for human consumption. Literature : Bigelow & Schroeder.(1948, 1957); Poll (1950); Cadenat (1957); Chen, Taniuchi & Nose (1979). Remarks : Limits to this species are adopted from Chen, Taniuchi & Nose (1979), and species formerly included as possible synonyms of S. blainvillei are listed elsewhere under S. mitsukurii and S. japonicus. Squalus cubensis Howell-Rivero, 1936 SQUAL Squal 2 Squalus cubensis Howell-Rivero, 1936, Proc.Boston Soc.Nat.Hist., 41(4):45, pls.10 and 11. Holotype Museum of Comparative Zoology, Harvard, MCZ 1458, 524 mm adult male. Type Locality : Havana, Cuba. Synonymy : None. FAO Names : En - Cuban dogfish; Fr - Aiguillat cubain; Sp - Galludo cubano. dermal denticle upper and underside of head lower teeth Field Marks: Two dorsal fins with ungrooved large spines, first dorsal spine origin in front of pectoral rear tips, first dorsal spine about as long as dorsal fin base, pectoral fins falcate and with angular free rear tips and deeply concave posterior margins, no white spots on sides, oblique-cusped cutting teeth in both jaws, no subterminal notch on caudal fin, no anal fin, and upper precaudal pit and lateral keels on caudal peduncle. Diagnostic Features : Body fairly slender. Snout subangular, slightly pointed, fairly broad, and moderately long, diagonal distance from snout tip to excurrent aperture of nostril much less than that from excurrent aperture to upper labial furrow, preoral snout about 1.3 to 1.4 times mouth width, preorbital snout less than twice as long as eye length; eyes considerably closer to snout tip than first gill slit; nostrils much closer to snout tip than mouth; anterior nasal flap with a small posterior secondary lobe, much narrower than space between its base and inner end of nostril. First dorsal spine long, nearly equal to fin base and with tip reaching nearly to apex of fin; second long, about as high as fin, and less than 6% of total length; first dorsal fin anteriorly situated, with fin origin just behind pectoral insertions and spine origin over their inner margins and well in front of their rear tips; first dorsal moderately high, height about half length from origin to rear tip; second dorsal markedly smaller than first, with height less than 6% of total length; pectoral fins fairly wide but strongly falcate, posterior margins deeply concave, rear tips angular and pointed; pelvic midbases about equidistant between first and second dorsal bases; caudal fin narrow-lobed and moderately long, with a long ventral lobe and strongly notched postventral margin. Precaudal pits well-developed. Lateral trunk denticles small, lanceolate and unicuspidate in adults. Colour: grey above, lighter below, without spots, dorsal fins with black tips and pectorals, pelvics and caudal with white edges. Size moderate, usually less than 1 m.

2 Geographical Distribution : Western Atlantic: North Carolina to Florida (USA), Cuba, Hispanola, northern Gulf of Mexico (Mexico to Florida); southern Brazil, Argentina. Habitat and Biology : A common offshore warm-temperate and tropical shark of the outer continental shelf and uppermost slopes, found on or near the bottom in large, dense schools at depths between 60 and 380 m; young occur in shallower water than adults. Ovoviviparous, number of young about 10 per litter. Has an unusual huge isopod parasite that lives in its buccal cavity. Probably eats bottom fishes and invertebrates. Size : Maximum total length possibly to 110 cm, common to 75 cm and maturing at 50 cm or less. Interest to Fisheries : Taken in commercial bottom trawls primarily in the northern Gulf of Mexico and fished for its liver, which yields oil and vitamins. Seldom utilized for food. Literature : Bigelow & Schroeder (1948, 1957); Compagno & Vergara (1978); Sadowsky & Moreira (1981). Squalus japonicus Ishikawa, 1908 SQUAL Squal 7 Squalus japonicus Ishikawa, 1908, Proc.Acad. Nat.Sci.Philad., 60:71. Holotype : Types not named and apparenlty not extant (see Chen, Taniuchi & Nose, Type Locality : Ishikawa (1908) mentioned three specimens, 2 from Tokyo Market and apparently from the Sagami Sea, and one from Kagoshima, Japan, on which he based his description of S. japonicus and deposited in the National Science Museum, Japan. Synonymy: None. Other Scientific Names Recently in Use : Squalus mitsukurii Jordan & Snyder, in Jordan & Fowler, 1903; Squalus fernandinus Molina, 1782 (= Squalus acanthias Linnaeus, 1758 FAO Names : En - Japanese spurdog; Fr - Aiguillat togari; Sp - Galludo japones. Field Marks : Two dorsal fins with ungrooved, large spines, first dorsal fin height less than 2/3 of its length from origin to base. First dorsal spine origin over pectoral inner margins, long, very angular prenarial snout with distance from tip to inner nostril greater than distance from nostril to upper labial furrow, tricuspidate lateral denticles, no white spots, oblique-cusped cutting teeth in both jaws, no subterminal notch on caudal fin, no anal fin, and upper precaudal pit and lateral keels on caudal peduncle. Diagnostic Features: Body fairly slender. Snout angular, broad-based but narrow-tipped, and very long, diagonal distance from. snout tip to excurrent aperture of nostril greater than that from excurrent aperture to upper labial furrow, preoral snout about 1.5 to 1.9 times mouth width, preorbital underside of head dermal denticles

3 snout at least twice eye length; eyes closer to first gill slits than snout tip; nostrils closer to mouth than snout tip; anterior nasal flap with posterior secondary lobe small and considerably narrower at base than distance from its base to inner corner of nostril. First dorsal spine moderately long, much less than fin base and with tip falling well below apex of fin; second spine long, slightly lower than fin, and usually less than 6% of total length; first dorsal fin anteriorly situated, with fin origin over pectoral inner margins and spine origin over or slightly behind pectoral rear tips; first dorsal fairly low, height slightly less than 2/3 of its length from origin to rear tip; second dorsal markedly smaller than first, with height less than 5% of total length; pectoral fins broad and semifalcate, posterior margins slightly concave, rear tips narrowly rounded; pelvic midbases about equidistant between first and second dorsal bases; caudal fin narrow-lobed and long, with long ventral lobe and strongly notched postventral margin. Precaudal pits strong. Lateral trunk denticles tricuspidate and with weakly scalloped posterior borders in adults. Colour: no white spots present on sides of body, dorsal fins with white edges, caudal without dark markings. Size moderate, up to slightly less than I m. Geographical Distribution: Western North Pacific: Southeastern Japan and East China Sea, including the Republic of Korea and the Philippines. Habitat and Biology : A common but little known temperate and tropical dogfish of the outer continental and insular shelves and uppermost slopes at 150 to 300 m depth, presumably on or near bottom. Size : Maximum total length 91 cm, females mature at 79 cm. Interest to Fisheries : Apparently common in its range and taken in fisheries off Japan, but details not available. Literature : Fowler (1941); Chen, Taniuchi & Nose (1979). Remarks : This species is usually synonymized with S. mitsukurii or S. fernandinus, but is recognized here following Chen, Taniuchi & Nose (1979). Squalus megalops (Macleay, 1881) SQUAL Squal 4 Acanthias megalops Macleay, 1881, Rec.Australian Mus., 4:33, pl. 4, fig. 2. Holotype : Australian Museum, Sydney. Type Locality : Port Jackson, Australia. Synonymy :? Squalus brevirostris Tanaka, 1912; Squalus acutipinnis Regan, FAO Names : En - Shortnose spurdog; Fr - Aiguillat nez court; Sp - Galludo ñato. Field Marks : Two dorsal fins with ungrooved large spines, first dorsal spine origin in front of pectoral rear tips, first dorsal spine somewhat shorter than dorsal fin base, pectoral fins falcate and with angular free rear tips and moderately concave posterior margins, no white spots on sides, oblique-cusped cutting teeth in both jaws, no subterminal notch on caudal fin, no anal fin, and upper precaudal pit and lateral keels on caudal peduncle.

4 Diagnostic Features: Body fairly slender. Snout subangular, slightly pointed, fairly broad, and moderately long, diagonal distance from snout tip to excurrent aperture of nostril much less than that from excurrent aperture to upper labial furrow, preoral snout about 1.3 to 1.4 times mouth width, preorbital snout less than twice eye length in adults; eyes closer to snout tip than first gill left nostril slits; nostrils closer to snout tip than mouth; anterior nasal flap with a small posterior secondary lobe, much narrower than space between its base and inner end of nostril. First dorsal spine moderately long, about half fin base and with tip falling short of apex of fin; second spine long, somewhat higher than fin, but less than 6% of total length; first dorsal fin anteriorly situated, with fin underside of head origin just behind pectoral insertions and spine origin over dermal denticles their inner margins and well in front of their rear tips; first dorsal moderately high, height about half length from origin to rear tip; second dorsal markedly smaller than first, with height less than 6% of total length; pectoral fins fairly wide but falcate, posterior margins moderately concave, rear tips angular and pointed; pelvic midbases closer to first dorsal base than second; caudal fin narrow-lobed and moderately long, with a long ventral lobe and strongly notched postventral margin. Precaudal pits well-developed. Lateral trunk denticles small, lanceolate and unicuspidate in adults. Colour: grey or dark brown above, lighter below, without spots, dorsal fins with black tips and white edges but these are often inconspicuous in adults. Size small, usually less than 70 cm. Geographical Distribution : Eastern Atlantic and western Indian Ocean: Guinea, Gabon to Namibia, South Africa, Mozambique. Western Pacific: Japan, the Koreas, China, Viet Nam; Australia (South Australia, Victoria, Tasmania), New Caledonia and New Hebrides. Habitat and Biology : A common to abundant small dogfish of temperate and tropical seas, found on the outer continental shelves and upper slopes on or near the bottom at depths of 50 to 732 m. Often forms large, dense schools where it occurs. On the east coast of South Africa some sexual segregation may occurs, with breeding females more southerly in distribution. Ovoviviparous, with number of young per litter 2 to 4 and generally 3. Off South Africa most young are born in the fall or early winter, and mating takes place in the early winter. The gestation period is thought to be about two years. Eats a variety of bony fishes, including lanternfishes, star-eaters (Astronesthes), snake and conger eels, scorpion fishes, as well as shrimps and other crustaceans, cephalopods, and other elasmobranchs. Off South Africa bony fishes predominated in stomach contents (40%), followed by cephalopods (21%), crustaceans (19%), and other elasmobranchs (1%). Size : Maximum total length about 71 cm, males maturing at about 40 to 42 cm, females at 53 to 57 cm and reaching 71 cm. Interest to Fisheries : This shark is often very abundant where it occurs, and is taken in considerable quantities in bottom trawls. It is utilized for human consumption, either fresh or dried salted or smoked. Literature : Whitley (1940); Fowler (1941); Bass, d'aubrey & Kistnasamy (1976); Fourmanoir & Rivaton (1979). Remarks : Squalus brevirostris Tanaka, 1912, from the western North Pacific, is often considered separate from S. megalops, but the validity of this is uncertain at present.

5 Squalus melanurus Fourmanoir & Rivaton, 1979 SQUAL Squal 8 Squalus melanurus Fourmanoir & Rivaton, 1979, Cah. Indo-Pacifique, (4):438, fig. 27. Holotype : Muséum National d'histoire Naturelle, Paris, MNHN , 650 mm male, presumably adult. Type Locality : New Caledonia. Synonymy : None. FAO Names : En - Blacktailed spurdog; Fr - Aiguillat à queue noire; Sp - Galludo cola negra. Field Marks : Two dorsal fins with ungrooved large spines, first dorsal spine origin in front of pectoral rear tips, snout rounded-parabolic and extremely long, preoral snout about twice mouth width, conspicuous black tips on pectoral fins, black dorsal caudal margin, and black ventral caudal lobe, no white spots on sides, oblique-cusped cutting teeth in both jaws, no subterminal notch on caudal fin, no anal fin, and upper precaudal pit and lateral keels on caudal peduncle. Diagnostic Features : Body fairly slender. Snout narrowly parabolic, narrow, and very long, diagonal distance from snout tip to excurrent aperture of nostril greater than that from excurrent aperture to upper labial furrow, preoral snout about 2.3 times mouth width, preorbital snout over twice eye length; eyes much closer to first gill slits than snout tip; nostrils closer to mouth than snout tip; anterior nasal flap with posterior secondary lobe small and considerably narrower at base than distance from its base to inner corner of nostril. First dorsal spine long, about 2/3 of fin base and with tip falling somewhat below apex of fin; second spine long, slightly higher than fin, and over 6% of total length; first dorsal fin anteriorly situated, with fin and spine origins over pectoral inner margins; first dorsal fairly high, height slightly over 3/4 of its length from origin to rear tip; second dorsal markedly smaller than first, but with height more than 5% of total length; pectoral fins probably semifalcate and with narrowly rounded rear tips; pelvic midbases about equidistant between first and second dorsal bases; caudal fin narrow-lobed and long, with long ventral lobe and strongly notched postventral margin. Precaudal pits strong. Lateral trunk denticles tricuspidate and with weakly scalloped posterior borders in adults. Colour: no white spots on body, dorsal fin tips, dorsal caudal margin, and entire ventral caudal lobe conspicuously black. Size moderate, up to 75 cm. Geographical Distribution : Known only from New Caledonia, from the Uatio and Bulari passes. Habitat and Biology : A little known, very distinctive longnosed dogfish from the insular slopes of New Caledonia, at depths of 320 to 340 m. Probably ovoviviparous; a single fetus was present in one female specimen. Eats lanternfishes, boarfishes, barracudinas, and flatheads. Specimens vigorously defend themselves by whipping their bodies and long second dorsal spines when captured. Size : Maximum total length 75 cm (adult females). Interest to Fisheries : None at present. Literature : Fourmanoir & Rivaton (1979). Remarks : Inadequately described but apparently distinct from other species of Squalus.

6 Squalus mitsukurii Jordan & Snyder, 1903 SQUAL Squal 6 Squalus mitsukurii Jordan & Snyder, 1901, Annot.Zool.Japon., 3:129 (nomen nudum); Jordan & Snyder, in Jordan & Fowler, 1903, Proc.U.S.Nat.Mus., 26(1324):629, but not fig. 3 (? = Squalus acanthias). Holotype : Stanford University Natural History Museum, SU-12793, ca. 724 mm adult female. Type Locality : Misaki, Japan. Synonymy :? Squalus philippinus Smith & Radcliffe, 1912 (not S. philippinus Shaw, 1804 = Heterodontus portusjacksoni (Meyer, 1793)) ;? Squalus griffini Phillipps, 1931;? Squalus montalbani Whitley, 1931 replacement name for S. philippinus Smith & Radcliffe, 1912 ;? Squalus tasmaniensis Rivera, Other Scientific Names: Recently in Use : 1758); Squalus blainville (Risso, 1826). Squalus fernandinus Molina, 1782 (= S. acanthias Linnaeus, FAO Names : En - Shortspine spurdog; Fr - Aiguillat épinette; So - Galludo espinilla. upper and lower teeth of right side Field Marks : Two dorsal fins with ungrooved large spines, first dorsal spine origin in front of pectoral rear tips, first dorsal spine much shorter than fin base, first dorsal low and less than 2/3 as high as long, moderately long rounded-parabolic snout with distance from tip to inner nostril greater than distance from nostril to upper labial furrow, tricuspidate lateral denticles, no white spots, oblique-cusped cutting teeth in both jaws, no subterminal notch on caudal fin, no anal fin, and upper precaudal pit and lateral keels on caudal peduncle. left nostril Diagnostic Features: Body fairly stout. Snout parabolic-rounded, broad, and moderately long, diagonal distance from snout tip to excurrent aperture of nostril underside of head greater than that from excurrent aperture to upper labial furrow, preoral snout about 1.1 to 1.4 times mouth width, preorbital snout less than twice eye length; eyes nearer the snout tip than the first gill slits; nostrils closer to snout tip than mouth; anterior nasal flap with small dermal denticle posterior secondary lobe, considerably narrower at base than distance from its base to inner corner of nostril. First dorsal spine moderately long, much less than fin base and with tip falling well below apex of fin; second spine long, about as high as fin, and less than 6% of total length; first dorsal fin more anteriorly situated, with fin origin about over pectoral insertions and spine origin over pectoral inner margins and in front of their rear tips; first dorsal moderately high, height less than 2/3 its length from origin to rear tip; second dorsal markedly smaller than first, with height usually less than 5% of total length. Precaudal pits strong; pectoral fins broad and semifalcate, posterior margins slightly concave, rear tips narrowly rounded; pelvic midbases closer to second dorsal base than first; caudal fin narrow-lobed and long, with long ventral lobe and strongly notched postventral margin. Precaudal pits strong. Lateral trunk denticles tricuspidate and with strongly scalloped posterior borders in adults. Colour: no white spots present on sides of body, fins with white edges but without conspicuous dark markings. Size moderate, up to about 1 m.

7 Geographical Distribution: Western North Pacific: Japan, the Koreas, China, probably Taiwan Island and Viet Nam, also seamounts in the North Pacific. Western South Pacific: Possibly New Zealand. Central Pacific: Hawaiian Islands (Chen, Taniuchi & Nose, 1979). There are dogfishes very similar to this species and possibly identical off Tasmania and Australia, the Philippines, South Africa, and the eastern and western Atlantic, that are apparently not conspecific with S. blainvillei. Records of S. blainvillei or S. fernandinus from the western Indian Ocean Mozambique, Madagascar, Tanzania, and India), New Caledonia, and the eastern Pacific off northern Chile may also involve S. mitsukurii. Habitat and Biology : A common dogfish of warm-temperate and tropical seas, found near or on the bottom on the continental and insular shelves and upper slopes at depths of 180 to 300 m in the western North Pacific; the Hawaiian Islands at 165 to 518 m; and New Zealand at 4 to 55 m. Very similar and perhaps conspecific dogfishes occur at depth of 432 m off the Philippines, at 50 to 740 m off South Africa, at 183 to 549 m off southern Australia and Tasmania, at 190 m off northern Chile, and 330 to 394 in the Gulf of Mexico. Ovoviviparous. Off the east coast of South Africa this species or a close relative has 4 to 9 young per litter, with most births in the autumn, a possible gestation period of up to two years, and sexual segregation of females in the southern part of its range. Off South Africa this shark or a cognate feeds mostly on bony fishes (57%), cephalopods (31%) and crustaceans (10%). Size : Maximum total length 110 cm, females mature at 72 cm and males betwee 65 and 89 cm; size at birth about 22 to 26 cm. Interest to Fisheries : Apparently common in the western North Pacific, and taken in fisheries there, but details unknown. Literature : Whitley (1940); Fowler (1941); Bigelow & Schroeder (1957); Garrick (1960b); Bass, d'aubrey & Kistnasamy (1976); Chen, Taniuchi & Nose (1979). Remarks : The arrangement of this species follows the recent revision of western North Pacific blainvilleilike dogfishes by Chen, Taniuchi & Nose (1979). I have examined the holotype of S. philippinus Smith & Radcliffe, 1912 and found that it agrees with S. mitsukurii in most details (specimen is USNM 70257, 32.5 cm immature male, from off Sombrero Island, Philippine Islands in 432 m depth). I include it as a possible synonym of S. mitsukurii (along with the replacement name S. montalbani), but note that Chen, Taniuchi & Nose (1979) regarded the species as being distinct from S. mitsukurii without mentioning details. They apparently did not examine the holotype of S. philippinus. Squalus rancureli Fourmanoir & Rivaton, 1979 SQUAL Squal 9 Squalus rancureli Fourmanoir & Rivaton, 1979, Cah.Indo-Pacifique, (4):437, figs Holotype : Muséum National d'histoire Naturelle, Paris, MNHN , 740 mm adult female. Type Locality : Vate, New Hebrides. Synonymy : None.

8 FAO Names : En - Cyrano spurdog; Fr - Aiguillat cyrano; Sp - Galludo cirano. Field Marks : Two dorsal fins with ungrooved large spines, first dorsal spine origin in front of pectoral rear tips, snout rounded-parabolic and extremely long, preoral snout about twice mouth width, no conspicuous black tips on fins, no white spots on sides, oblique-cusped cutting teeth in both jaws, no subterminal notch on caudal fin, ventral caudal lobe very short, no anal fin, and upper precaudal pit and lateral keels on caudal peduncle. Diagnostic Features : Body fairly slender. Snout narrowly parabolic, narrow, and very long, diagonal distance from snout tip to excurrent aperture of nostril greater than that from excurrent aperture to upper labial furrow, preoral snout about 2.0 times mouth width, preorbital snout over twice eye length; eyes much closer to first gill slits than snout tip; nostrils closer to mouth than snout tip; anterior nasal flap with posterior secondary lobe apparently absent. First dorsal spine moderate-sized, less than half of fin base and with tip failing well underside of head below apex of fin; second spine long, slightly higher than fin, and about 5% of total length; first dorsal fin anteriorly situated, with fin and spine origins over pectoral inner margins; first dorsal fairly high, height slightly over 3/4 of its length from origin to rear tip; second dorsal markedly smaller than first, and with height more than 5% of total length; pectoral fins probably semifalcate and with narrowly rounded rear tips; pelvic midbases somewhat closer to first dorsal base than second; caudal fin narrow-lobed and long, but with a short ventral lobe and strongly notched postventral margin. Precaudal pits strong. Lateral trunk denticles tricuspidate and with apparently weakly scalloped posterior borders in adults. Colour: no white spots on body, fins not conspicuously black. Size moderate, up to 77 cm. Geographical Distribution : Only known from the vicinity of Vate, New Hebrides. Habitat and Biology : A little-known but distinctive, longnosed deepwater dogfish of the insular slopes of New Hebrides, at depths of 320 and 400 m. Probably ovoviviparous, number of young 3. Size : Maximum total length 77 cm (adult females), females maturing at about 65 cm and reaching at least 77 cm; size at birth near 24 cm. Interest to Fisheries : None at present. Remarks : Inadequately described but undoubtedly distinct from other species of Squalus. click for next page