Sea angel
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Sea angel ( Squatina squatina ) |
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| Squatina squatina | ||||||||||||
| ( Linnaeus , 1758) |
The sea angel ( Squatina squatina ), also known as the common angel shark , is a ground-dwelling shark that is found on the European Atlantic coast and in the Mediterranean Sea .
Appearance and characteristics
The sea angel can reach a maximum body length of about 180 cm, possibly up to 240 cm and a weight of up to 80 kg. As with other angel sharks, the body is strongly flattened with very broad pectoral fins , which makes the animals look more like long rays in shape . However, the pectoral fins are clearly separated from the trunk, while in most rays they merge seamlessly into the body. The rear ends of the pectoral fin are strongly rounded. Sea angels have two dorsal fins that are located on the caudal peduncle and have no anal fin . The first dorsal fin attaches behind the free ends of the pelvic fins. The lower lobe of the caudal fin is longer than the upper. The body has a uniform basic color without any noticeable markings. The suction holes are more than 1.5 eye diameters away from the eyes. The mouth is terminal, the outer nostrils are provided with simple barbels . The rear ones are ramified. There may be small thorns along the back midline and above the eyes.
distribution
The range of the common angel shark is in the coastal area of the northeast Atlantic from southern Norway and the Shetland Islands over the North Sea down to Morocco and the Western Sahara as well as around the Canary Islands and in the Mediterranean Sea .
It lives in shallow water and on the continental shelf over sandy or muddy seabeds at depths of 5 to 150 meters. The shark comes to the shallow water areas of the coasts especially in summer and then also migrates to the north, e.g. B. in the North Sea and in the Skagerrak . He spends the winter in deeper water.
Way of life
The sea angel feeds mainly on flatfish , rays , molluscs and crabs , which it prey on lying on the ground as a stalker . Like all angel sharks, it is ovoviviparous - the eggs remain in the mother until they hatch. Depending on their size, the females of this species give birth to 7 to 25 young animals. The gestation period is 8 to 10 months. The hatching of the juvenile sharks is in the Mediterranean from December to February, on the coasts of England in July. When hatching, the young sharks are 20 to 30 cm long. The animals reach sexual maturity with a body length of about 125 to 170 centimeters.
Danger
The species is classified as Critically Endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and is now one of the hundred most critically endangered species. The main reason is believed to be the increase in trawling in its range.
supporting documents
- ↑ Fish Species of Gran Canaria - Angel Shark ( Memento of the original from December 1, 2017 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , Leagues Ahead Diving , last accessed November 28, 2017
- ↑ a b Squatina squatina in the endangered Red List species the IUCN 2010. Posted by: Morey, G., Serena, F., Mancusi, C. Fowler, SL, Dipper, F. & Ellis, J., 2006. Accessed on June 21, 2011.
- ^ IUCN information sheet, engl.
literature
- Bent J. Muus, Jørgen G. Nielsen; Preben Dahlström and Bente Olesen Nyström (illustrations): The marine fish of Europe. In the North Sea, the Baltic Sea and the Atlantic. (Original title: Havfisk og fiskeri i Nordvesteuropa , translated by Matthias Stehmann), Franckh-Kosmos , Stuttgart 1999, ISBN 3-440-07804-3 .
