Carcharhiniformes, the ground sharks, are the largest order of sharks, with over 270 species. They include a number of common types, such as catsharks, swellsharks, and requiem sharks.
Scyliorhinidae is a family of sharks, one of a few families whose members share the common name catsharks, belonging to the order Carcharhiniformes, the ground sharks. Although they are generally known as catsharks, some species can also be called dogfish due to previous naming. However, a dogfish may generally be distinguished from a catshark as catsharks lay eggs while dogfish have live young. Like most bottom feeders, catsharks feed on benthic invertebrates and smaller fish. They are not harmful to humans. The family is paraphyletic, containing several distinct lineages that do not form a monophyletic group.
Scyliorhinus is a genus of catsharks in the family Scyliorhinidae. This genus is known in the fossil records from the Cretaceous period, late Albian age to the Pliocene epoch.
Parmaturus is a genus of deepwater catsharks in the family Pentanchidae. Four species were described in 2007 and another in 2019 with more species likely to be described in the near future.
Galeus is a genus of deepwater catshark, belonging to the family Pentanchidae, commonly known as sawtail catsharks in reference to a distinctive saw-toothed crest of enlarged dermal denticles, found along the upper edges of their caudal fins. They are found in the Atlantic, the western and central Pacific, and the Gulf of California, inhabiting deep waters at or close to the sea floor. Members of this genus are rather small, slim sharks with firm bodies and thick, rough skin. Their heads are usually fairly long and pointed, and have large mouths with well-developed furrows at the corners. They have large pectoral and anal fins, and two similar dorsal fins placed well back. Many species are ornately patterned with dark saddles and/or blotches. Sawtail catsharks feed on various invertebrates and fishes, and may be either egg-laying or live-bearing. These harmless sharks are sometimes caught as bycatch but are of minimal commercial value.
The Bali catshark is a species of coloured catshark, belonging to the family Atelomycteridae, found only off the Indonesian island of Bali. It can grow up to 47 Atelomycterus baliensis inhabits the deep coastal waters of Bali, Indonesia, feeding on small fish and invertebrates.
The quagga catshark is a species of shark belonging to the family Pentanchidae, the deepwater catsharks. A small, slim-bodied shark reaching 37 cm (15 in) in length, it has a distinctive color pattern of narrow, dark brown vertical bars, which resemble those of the quagga. Its head is short and flattened, with a pointed snout tip that is not upturned.
The Arabian catshark is a species of shark belonging to the family Pentanchidae, the deepwater catsharks. It can grow up to 30 centimetres (12 in) long, and lives in open seas. It is only known from a single specimen, now lost, which was found on the continental slope of the Arabian Sea.
The bristly catshark iis a species of shark belonging to the family Pentanchidae, the deepwater catsharks. This shark is found from southeastern India and the Andaman Islands, between latitudes 15° N and 5° N, at depths between 200 and 300 m. Its length usually ranges from around 20–26 cm (7.9–10.2 in), and it is regarded as the smallest catshark of Bythaelurus.
The dusky catshark is a species of shark belonging to the family Pentanchidae, the deepwater catsharks. This shark is endemic to the southeast Pacific Ocean, off the coasts of Peru and Chile. It grows to a maximum length of 70 cm (28 in), and is oviparous like many other chondrichthyans in the Indo-Pacific.
The blackmouth catshark is a species of deepwater catshark, belonging yo the family Pentanchidae, common in the northeastern Atlantic Ocean from Iceland to Senegal, including the Mediterranean Sea. It is typically found over the continental slope at depths of 150–1,400 m (490–4,590 ft), on or near muddy bottoms. The youngest sharks generally inhabit shallower water than the older juveniles and adults. This slim-bodied species is characterized by the black interior of its mouth, a marbled pattern of pale-edged brownish saddles or blotches along its back and tail, and a prominent saw-toothed crest of enlarged dermal denticles along the upper edge of its caudal fin. It reaches lengths of 50–79 cm (20–31 in), with sharks in the Atlantic growing larger than those in the Mediterranean.
The longfin sawtail catshark is a rare, little-known species of deepwater catshark., part of the family Pentanchidae. Once thought to be a subspecies of the roughtail catshark along with the Antilles catshark, it inhabits deep water off the Caribbean coasts of Panama and Colombia. This slim-bodied species has a marbled dorsal color pattern and a prominent crest of enlarged dermal denticles along the dorsal edge of its caudal fin. It can be distinguished from similar species by its relatively longer anal fin and small adult length of under 35 cm (14 in). The longfin sawtail catshark is oviparous.
The shortnose demon catshark is a shark of the family Pentanchidae, the deepwater catsharks. This species is found only in deep water in the East China Sea. Its length is up to 40 cm. A. internatus is known only from the holotype and a paratype, both caught in the East China Sea, probably taken as bycatch in deepwater trawl fisheries. The reproduction of this catshark is oviparous.
The Panama ghost catshark is a species of shark belonging to the family Pentanchidae, the deepwater catsharks. This little known catshark is only found off Panama, between 9°N and 2°N. The reproduction of the Panama ghost shark is oviparous.
The largenose catshark is a species of shark belonging to the family Pentanchidae, the deepwater catsharks. The largenose catshark is found on the upper continental slopes in the eastern Pacific, from the Gulf of Panama to Ecuador and central Chile, between 9°N and 28°S. It can grow up to 70 cm. Its reproduction is oviparous. This nose shark is considered to be a harmless species. It is known to originate from the Gulf of Panama, Ecuador, and Central Chile.
The longnose catshark is a species of shark belonging to the family Pentanchidae, the deepwater catsharks. This shark is found in the eastern central Pacific from central and southern California and the Gulf of California, between latitudes 38° N and 23° N, at depths down to 1,890. Its length is up to 58 cm.
The longhead catshark or smoothbelly catshark is a species of shark, family Pentanchidae, the deepwater catsharks. This shark has a patchy distribution in the Indo-Pacific from Mozambique to southern Japan to northern Australia. It is found in water between 500 and 1,140 m deep. This species grows to 59 cm (23 in) long and is characterized by its extremely long and narrow snout, short abdomen, and long anal and caudal fins. In addition, a large area of the anterior ventral portion of its body lacks dermal denticles. The longhead catshark is oviparous and the only known cartilaginous fish that is normally hermaphroditic, with the majority of individuals having both the functional reproductive organs of one sex and the undeveloped reproductive organs of the opposite sex.
Bythaelurus is a genus of sharks belonging to the family Pentanchidae, the deepwater catsharks. The genus Bythaelurus Compagno 1988 was first described as a subgenus of Halaelurus Gill 1862 based on several morphological characteristics including a soft body with thin skin, a bluntly rounded snout without a pointed, knob-like tip, and eyes not noticeably elevated on the dorsal surface of the head. Members of this genus are generally found in deep water and have more somber body coloration.
Figaro is a genus of shark, and part of the family Pentanchidae, the deepwater catsharks. Until 2008, Figaro was generally considered to be a subgenus of Galeus, the sawtail catsharks. The two known species are found off Australia, inhabiting deep, offshore waters on or near the bottom. Figaro contains small, slender, firm-bodied sharks that bear distinctive crests of enlarged, spiny dermal denticles along the dorsal and ventral edges of their short caudal fins. The caudal peduncle is relatively long, such as that the anal and caudal fins are some distance apart. In adult males, the inner margins of the pelvic fins are fused together to form a subtle "apron" over the claspers. F. boardmani is a predator of fishes, crustaceans, and cephalopods, and is oviparous; less is known about the F. striatus. Both are harmless and are of no economic importance.
The eastern banded catshark is a species of catshark, and part of the family Scyliorhinidae. It is found along the northeastern coast of Australia.
