Spotted shark
| Spotted shark | ||||||||||||
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Spotted shark ( Galeus melastomus ) |
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| Systematics | ||||||||||||
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| Scientific name | ||||||||||||
| Galeus melastomus | ||||||||||||
| Rafinesque , 1810 |
The spotted shark ( Galeus melastomus ) belongs to the order of the basic sharks (Carcharhiniformes) and to the shark family Pentanchidae .
features
Spotted sharks have a very slim body and reach a maximum length of 90 centimeters. They are gray-brown in color with a pattern of dark spots, the underside is white. The two dorsal fins standing far back are almost the same size. The pectoral and pelvic fins are short and wide, the anal fin is very long.
The teeth are small with one point and several minor points.
distribution
The spotted shark lives in the eastern Atlantic , from the Faroe Islands to Senegal and throughout the Mediterranean . They prefer to stay on the seabed of the continental slopes at depths of 50 to 1400 meters.
Way of life
The sharks live individually or in larger shoals separated by body size. They often rest on the ground and are slow swimmers. Bone fish , crustaceans , cephalopods , smaller cartilaginous fish , salps , syringe worms and carrion form the food of the animals. Spotted sharks lay 1 to 14 egg capsules from which 8 centimeter long fry hatch.
literature
- Alessandro de Maddalena, Harald Bänsch: Sharks in the Mediterranean. Franckh-Kosmos Verlags-GmbH, Stuttgart 2005, ISBN 3-440-10458-3 .
Web links
- Spotted shark on Fishbase.org (English)
- Galeus melastomus inthe IUCN 2013 Red List of Threatened Species . Posted by: Serena, F., Mancusi, C., Ungaro, N., Hareide, NR, Guallart, J., Coelho, R. & Crozier, P., 2003. Retrieved November 6, 2013.