| African angelshark | |
|---|---|
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Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Chondrichthyes |
| Subclass: | Elasmobranchii |
| Order: | Squatiniformes |
| Family: | Squatinidae |
| Genus: | Squatina |
| Species: | S. africana |
| Binomial name | |
| Squatina africana Regan, 1908 | |
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| Range of African angelshark (in blue) | |
The African angelshark (Squatina africana) is an angelshark of the family Squatinidae.
Born: 28–30 cm TL; Mature: ~ 80 cm (M), 90 cm (F) TL; Max: ~ 122 cm TL.
Color: Are a greyish or a reddish-brown, there are many light and dark spots, which are often large granular-centered ocelli in young fish. Obtains larger symmetrical dark bands or saddles, blotches on a broad, angular, high pectoral fins. It has a dark tail base, with white margins. Body: Has simple flat nasal barbels, with its tips tapering or spatulate. The anterior nasal flaps smooth or are slightly fringed. There are no angular lobes on lateral dermal flaps. Enlarged thorns on its head, and not back. Obtains a concave between its eyes.
Western Indian Ocean: found in east and southern Africa; South Africa to Mozambique, Tanzania and Madagascar, and possibly Somalia. Nominal west African records possibly based on another species. 4°S - 32°S.
Subtropical; continental shelf and upper slope, demersal, marine. Usually found in sand and mud. From surfing too? - 494 m, but usually occurs at 60–300 m down.
Lies in wait buried underneath sand or mud to ambush its prey with lightning-fast reflexes and great precision.
Diet: Feeds on small bony fishes, squid and octopuses, and including shrimp. Reproduction: Is ovoviviparous and gives birth to at least 7 or 11 pups per litter.
IUCN Red List: near threatened. It is common only on the east coast of South Africa. Trawl fishery bycatch.
Traumatogenic.
Very low, minimum population doubling time more than 14 years; high vulnerability.
Angel sharks are sharks belonging to the genus Squatina. They are the only living members of the family Squatinidae and order Squatiniformes. They commonly inhabit sandy seabeds close to 150 m (490 ft) in depth.
The sand devil or Atlantic angel shark is a species of angelshark, family Squatinidae, native to the northwestern Atlantic Ocean. It occurs off the eastern United States, in the northern Gulf of Mexico, and possibly in parts of the Caribbean Sea. This bottom-dwelling shark is found in shallow inshore waters in summer and fall, and deep offshore waters in winter and spring. The sand devil's flattened body and enlarged pectoral and pelvic fins give it a ray-like appearance. There is a band of enlarged thorns running along the middle of its back. It is gray or brown in color, with scattered small dark spots. This species reaches 1.2–1.5 m (3.9–4.9 ft) in length.
The African sawtail catshark is a species of shark belonging to the family Pentanchidae, the deepwater catsharks. Demersal in nature, it is found at depths of 160–720 m (520–2,360 ft) off the western African coast from Morocco to South Africa. This slender species has a rather long, pointed snout, a series of dark saddles along the back and tail, and a prominent crest of enlarged dermal denticles along the upper edge of the caudal fin. Its maximum known length is 46 cm (18 in).
The sawback angelshark is an angelshark of the family Squatinidae It is one of rarest species of sharks known to date, and one of the three species of angelsharks that inhabits the Mediterranean. The Sawback angelshark lives in sandy and muddy bottoms of the ocean at depths of 30-500m.
The eastern angelshark is an angelshark of the family Squatinidae.
The Argentine angelshark is an angelshark of the family Squatinidae.
The Australian angelshark is a species of angelshark, family Squatinidae, found in the subtropical waters of southern Australia from Western Australia to New South Wales between latitudes 18°S and 41°S, at depths down to 255 m (840 ft). Its length is up to 1.52 m (5 ft). Reproduction is ovoviviparous, with up to 20 pups in a litter.
The Pacific angelshark is a species of angelshark, family Squatinidae, found in the eastern Pacific Ocean from Alaska to the Gulf of California, and from Ecuador to Chile, although those in the Gulf of California and southeastern Pacific may in fact be separate species. The Pacific angelshark inhabits shallow, coastal waters on sandy flats, usually near rocky reefs, kelp forests, or other underwater features. This species resembles other angel sharks in appearance, with a flattened body and greatly enlarged pectoral and pelvic fins. Characteristic features of this shark include a pair of cone-shaped barbels on its snout, angular pectoral fins, and a brown or gray dorsal coloration with many small dark markings. It attains a maximum length of 1.5 m (4.9 ft).
The Taiwan angelshark is an angelshark in the family Squatinidae. The Taiwan angelshark is one of four species of Squatina in the waters around Taiwan and Japan. It is a demersal, ray-like shark that grows to 1–2 meters in length.
The Japanese angelshark is a species of angelshark, family Squatinidae, found in the northwestern Pacific Ocean off China, Japan, and Korea. It is a bottom-dwelling shark found in sandy habitats down to 300 m (980 ft) deep. This species has the flattened shape with wing-like pectoral and pelvic fins typical of its family, and grows to 1.5 m (4.9 ft) or more in length. Its two dorsal fins are placed behind the pelvic fins, and a row of large thorns occurs along its dorsal midline. Its upper surface is cryptically patterned, with numerous squarish dark spots on a brown background.
The ocellated angelshark is an angelshark of the family Squatinidae found only from the Taiwan Straits in the western Pacific between latitudes 28 and 22°N and in northern Malaysia. Its length is up to 63 cm.
The clouded angelshark is an angelshark of the family Squatinidae found in the northwest Pacific from the southeastern Sea of Japan to Taiwan between latitudes 47° N and 22° N. Its length is up to 1.63 m.
The smoothback angelshark is an angelshark of the family Squatinidae found in the eastern Atlantic and Mediterranean.
Squatina squatina, the angelshark or monkfish, is a species of shark in the family Squatinidae, that were once widespread in the coastal waters of the northeastern Atlantic Ocean. Well-adapted for camouflaging itself on the sea floor, the angelshark has a flattened form with enlarged pectoral and pelvic fins, giving it a superficial resemblance to a ray. This species can be identified by its broad and stout body, conical barbels, thornless back, and grayish or brownish dorsal coloration with a pattern of numerous small light and dark markings. It measures up to 2.4 m (7.9 ft) long.
The ornate angelshark is an angelshark of the family Squatinidae endemic to southern Australia between latitudes 30°S and 35°S, at depths of 130–400 m (430–1,310 ft). It can reach lengths of up to 1.4 m (4.6 ft). Females tend to have a TL at 1150–1250 mm, while males range from a TL of 810–910 mm at sexual maturity. Reproduction is ovoviviparous, with two to nine pups per litter.
The Indonesian angelshark is a rare species of angelshark, family Squatinidae, known only from a few specimens collected from fish landing sites in southern Indonesia. It is thought to inhabit the deep waters of the continental slope. Reaching at least 1.34 m (4.4 ft) long, this species has a flattened, ray-like shape and a well-developed tail and caudal fin. It is characterized by the absences of fringes on its nasal barbels and thorns down the midline of its back, as well as by its relatively plain grayish-brown dorsal coloration with dark saddles beneath the dorsal fin bases and a black leading margin on the underside of the pectoral fins. The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) has classified it as Critically Endangered due to significant fishing pressure.
The Philippines angelshark is a species of angelshark, family Squatinidae, known only from a 33 cm (13 in) long immature female caught in the Philippines, where it is the only known representative of its family. It has a flattened body and head with greatly expanded pectoral and pelvic fins, and is greenish above with brown spots. Identifying traits of this species include the spiracles, which are more widely spaced than the eyes and bear papillae on the posterior inner rims, and the relative positions of the two dorsal fins. Additionally, S. caillieti lacks fringes on its barbels, enlarged thorns along the middle of its back, and ocelli ("eyespots") on its fins.
The disparate angelshark is a species of angelshark found along the East Coast of the United States and the Gulf of Mexico. It occurs at depths down to 1,290 m (4,230 ft) and reaches a length of 49 cm (19 in). Heteroptera in its name refers to the difference in size, shape and area of the two dorsal fins. Disparate angelsharks have the typical angel shark body form that is broadly flattened with large pectoral/pelvic fins and eyes and spiracles on the top of their heads. Their common and species name comes from them having dorsal fins of very different sizes, shapes, and areas compared to other angel sharks.
The hidden angelshark(Squatina occulta) is a species of angelshark that was named by Carolus Maria Vooren and Kleber Grübel da Silva in 1991. It inhabits the Atlantic coastline of South America from southern Brazil to Argentina. Hidden angel sharks grow up to 124 cm in length and are ovoviviparous, meaning the embryos develop inside eggs that remain inside the mother's body until they are ready to hatch.
Squatina mapama is a species of angelshark found in the Caribbean. It was described by Douglas J. Long, David A. Ebert, Jose Tavera, Arturo Acero Pizarro, and David Ross Robertson in December 2021.
