Elasmobranchii (sharks and rays) >
Carcharhiniformes (Ground sharks) >
Scyliorhinidae (Cat sharks) > Scyliorhininae
Etymology: Scyliorhinus: skylion, Greek for dogfish or small shark; rhinus, from rhine (Gr.), rasp, alluding to a shark’s jagged, rasp-like skin (See ETYFish); stellaris: Latin for starry or of the stars, referring to many large and small black and white spots on body (See ETYFish).
More on author: Linnaeus.
Environment: milieu / climate zone / depth range / distribution range
Ecology
Marine; reef-associated; depth range 1 - 400 m (Ref. 27000), usually 20 - 63 m (Ref. 244). Subtropical; 63°N - 12°N, 19°W - 37°E
Northeast Atlantic: southern Scandinavia to Mediterranean, Morocco, Mauritania to Senegal (Ref. 125614). Records further south in the Atlantic, to Gulf of Guinea and Congo River mouth may be misidentifications of Scyliorhinus cervigoni (Ref. 127434).
Length at first maturity / Size / Weight / Age
Maturity: Lm 78.0, range 77 - 79 cm
Max length : 170 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 26999); common length : 125 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 244); max. reported age: 19 years (Ref. 72467)
Dorsal spines (total): 0; Anal spines: 0. A large, fairly stocky, catshark with large and small black spots and sometimes white spots covering dorsal surface, saddle markings obsolete, small anterior nasal flaps that do not reach the mouth, no nasoral grooves, labial furrows on lower jaw only, second dorsal fin much smaller than first (Ref. 244)
A common inshore and offshore shark found on the continental shelf over rough, even rocky or coralline ground, and algal-covered bottoms. Found at depths of 1 or 2 m to at least 125 m. Feed on bottom-living invertebrates such as mollusks and crustaceans and on demersal fishes (e.g. sharks, S. canicula). Oviparous (Ref. 50449). Utilized fresh and dried salted for human consumption, and processed into fishmeal. May attain 170 cm (Ref. 27000).
Oviparous, with a single egg per oviduct (Ref. 244). Embryos feed solely on yolk (Ref. 50449). Size at hatching about 16 cm (Ref. 244).
Compagno, L.J.V., 1984. FAO Species Catalogue. Vol. 4. Sharks of the world. An annotated and illustrated catalogue of shark species known to date. Part 2 - Carcharhiniformes. FAO Fish. Synop. 125(4/2):251-655. Rome: FAO. (Ref. 244)
IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 130435: Version 2024-2)
Threat to humans
Harmless
Human uses
Fisheries: minor commercial; aquarium: public aquariums
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Estimates based on models
Preferred temperature (Ref.
123201): 7.8 - 19.5, mean 10.9 °C (based on 836 cells).
Phylogenetic diversity index (Ref.
82804): PD
50 = 0.5000 [Uniqueness, from 0.5 = low to 2.0 = high].
Bayesian length-weight: a=0.00178 (0.00137 - 0.00231), b=3.19 (3.12 - 3.26), in cm total length, based on LWR estimates for this species (Ref.
93245).
Trophic level (Ref.
69278): 4.0 ±0.3 se; based on diet studies.
Resilience (Ref.
120179): Low, minimum population doubling time 4.5 - 14 years (Fec assumed to be <100).
Fishing Vulnerability (Ref.
59153): Very high vulnerability (90 of 100).
Climate Vulnerability (Ref.
125649): Moderate vulnerability (38 of 100).
Nutrients (Ref.
124155): Calcium = 4.81 [1.06, 25.16] mg/100g; Iron = 0.325 [0.083, 0.956] mg/100g; Protein = 19.4 [16.3, 22.5] %; Omega3 = 0.117 [0.048, 0.276] g/100g; Selenium = 21.6 [6.3, 65.2] μg/100g; VitaminA = 20.9 [6.7, 69.0] μg/100g; Zinc = 0.437 [0.202, 0.902] mg/100g (wet weight);
