Australian Sharpnose Shark

About the Australian Sharpnose Shark

The  Australian Sharpnose shark is adundant in waters over soft bottomed habitats in northern Australia and in southern Papua New Guinea.

The young are born at 25 cm and males mature at 55 cm and reach a maximum size of 67 cm. A study has found that females give birth of a litter of 1 to 10 pups after a gestation period of 11.5 months. During the gestation period there is an embryonic diapause that occurs  for 7.5 months during which the embryonic development is arrested. After they’re born these sharks grow rapidly and maturity after only one year and live up to seven years.

The fast growth and reproduction of this species have made them resilient to growing fishing pressure. This species is caught as bycatch in gillnet fisheries for mackerel and barramundi along the Queensland coast. In the waters off the Northern Territory, they make up to 0.5 per cent of the catch in the gillnet fisheries. At the moment this species is considered not threatened, but further studies must be conducted.

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