Apristurus is a genus of catsharks, the family Pentanchidae, the deepwater catsharks. The species in this genus are commonly known as the ghost or demon catsharks.
The humpback cat shark is a shark of the family Pentanchidae, the deepwater catsharks, in the order Carcharhiniformes, found in the northwest Pacific Ocean off Zhujiang, South China Sea, from the surface to 915 m. Its length is 39–41 cm. The largest specimen examined by Nakaya and Sato was 54.2 cm TL. The humpback catshark is a little-known oviparous deepwater catshark.
The hoary catshark is a shark of the family Pentanchidae, the deepwater catsharks. This species is found in the western central Atlantic in the Caribbean, at depths between 521 and 915 m. Its length is up to 45.5 cm (17.9 in). The reproduction of this catshark is oviparous.
The longfin catshark is a shark of the family Pentanchidae. This shark is found in the western Pacific from Japan to the Philippines, and the East and South China Seas, and the Kyūshū-Palau Ridge, at depths between 530 and 865 m. Its length is up to 48 cm.
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 bulldog catshark is a species of shark belonging to the family Pentanchidae, the deepwater catsharks/ This shark is found in the deep waters of the East China Sea and in the Northwest Pacific. In New Zealand waters it is found at the Reinga Ridge, the West Norfolk Ridge, the Hikurangi Trough and the Chatham Rise as well as on the Campbell Plateau.
The Japanese catshark is a shark of the family Pentanchidae, the deepwater catsharks, found in the northwest Pacific off Chiba Prefecture, Honshū, Japan, between 36 and 34°N. This shark has a relatively slender body, with the trunk tapering towards the head. Its snout is moderately long, bell-shaped, and broad; the preoral snout is about 7% to 8% of its total length. It has large gill slits, rather small eyes in adults, nostrils fairly broad, and a long broad, arched mouth. It is commonly taken by trawl off the type locality, and possibly used for oil, human consumption, and fishmeal or fish cakes locally.
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 South China catshark is a species of shark belonging to the family Pentanchidae, the deepwater catsharks. This catshark is known only from the holotype, which was taken from the South China Sea at a depth of 537 m (1,762 ft). Its length is 42 cm (17 in), but this measurement was taken from an immature specimen. The reproduction of the South China catshark is oviparous.
The Saldanha catshark is a species of shark belonging to the family Pentanchidae, the deepwater catsharks. This catshark is found from Cape Columbine to south of False Bay in South Africa, between 31 and 40°S. Its length is up to 88 cm (35 in). It is a plain, dark grey-brown, stout catshark, with moderately large eyes, a broad snout, and large pectoral fins.
The smalleye catshark is a species of shark beloning to the family Pentanchidae, the deepwater catsharks. This shark is found in the southeast Atlantic at depths between 700 and 2,000 m. It can grow up to 61 cm. The reproduction of this catshark is oviparous.
The ghost catshark is a species of shark belonging to the family Pentanchidae, the deepwater catsharks. This species is found on the continental slopes in the northwest Atlantic off Massachusetts, the northeast Atlantic from the Porcupine Bank west of Ireland and the southern Atlantic off Cape Town, at depths between 600 and 1,900 metres.
The smallfin catshark is a species of shark belonging to the family Pentanchidae, the deepwater catsharks in the order Carcharhiniformes. This shark is found in the western Atlantic at depths between 35 and 1,115 m. Its length is up to 48 cm (19 in).
The smalldorsal cat shark is a species of shark beloning to the family Pentanchidae, the deepwater catsharks. This shark is found in the South China Sea, at depths to 915 m. It can grow up to 37 cm. A. micropterygeus is unique among its species in having a narrow and sharply pointed first dorsal fin. However, Nakaya and Sato (2000) recommended that the status of the species be reviewed once additional specimens are available, citing the possibility that the dorsal fin of the holotype may have been malformed. The reproduction of the smalldorsal catshark is oviparous.
The spatulasnout catshark, also known as the Borneo catshark or flatnose catshark, is a species of shark belonging to the family Pentanchidae, the deepwater catshark. This shark is found in the western Pacific between 35°N and 1° N. Its length is up to 80 cm (31 in).
The broadgill catshark is a species of shark belonging to the family Pentanchidae, the deepwater catsharks. This shark is found in the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea, between 30°N and 9° N, on the continental slopes at depths between 700 and 1,500 m. Its length is up to 46 cm. The reproduction of the broadgill catshark is oviparous.
The pale catshark is a rare species of shark belonging to the family Pentanchidae, the deepwater catsharks. The holotype, the only specimen, was found on the Makassar Strait slope at a depth of 655 m (2,149 ft). Its length is around 21 cm (8.3 in), although this measurement was taken from a juvenile specimen. The reproduction of the pale catshark is oviparous.
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 broadmouth catshark is a rare species of shark of the family Pentanchidae, the deepwater catsharks. The holotype and only specimen of which was taken from off Zhujiang in the South China Sea, at a depth of 913 m. Its length is around 38 cm. The broadmouth catshark's reproduction is oviparous. Considering the species is not well known, the threats are not known either but may be deepwater fisheries.
Fedorov's catshark is a shark of the family Pentanchidae, the deepwater catsharks. This shark has oviparous reproduction. This is a very poorly known species, with less than 30 specimens reported in the scientific literature. Almost nothing is known of its biology. This species may be endemic to northern Japanese waters, where it is taken in water around 1,200 m deep. However, accurate identification of Apristurus species is particularly difficult, and further research is required to determine its geographical and bathymetrical distribution.
