Banded Houndshark

About the Banded Houndshark

The Banded Houndshark has a broad distribution in the Northwest Pacific, ranging from southern Russia to Japan, the Korean Peninsula, China and Taiwan. It mostly frequents sandy and muddy bays, rocky habitats, estuaries, seaweed beds and eelgrass beds close to shore. They are demersal and live on the continental shelf at depths ranging from approximately 30 to 150 m (98–492 ft).

Description

Banded houndsharks have a slender body and a short, rounded snout with widely spaced nostrils. Their horizontally oval eyes are placed high on their head, and they have five pairs of gill slits. They have broad, triangular pectoral fins, and the trailing margin of the first dorsal fin is almost vertical. Their dorsal surface is greyish or brownish with darker bands, saddles and small spots, while the underside is lighter. Young sharks usually have more visible dark markings, which tend to fade with age.

Biology and Behaviour

Banded houndsharks feed on benthic invertebrates and bottom-dwelling fish. Their diet may include crustaceans such as shrimp and crabs, cephalopods like octopus, polychaete worms and small bony fishes.

They can grow to a maximum length of 150 cm (4.9 ft). Off the coast of Japan, males mature between 91 to 106 cm (35.8–41.7 in) in length and at five to six years of age. Females mature between approximately 106 cm at six to seven years of age.

Banded houndsharks are nocturnal and generally solitary. However, they may gather in groups when food is abundant. The species also has a reputation of being shy around divers.

Reproduction and Lifespan

Females are ovoviviparous, which means the eggs are carried within the mother until the young sharks are ready to hatch. Females can have between 8 and 29 pups per litter, with an average of 9 to 10 pups. The gestation period lasts about 9 to 12 months, and pups measure approximately 18 to 20 cm (7.1–7.9 in) at birth. Male Banded Houndsharks live to about 15 years, while females may live for up to 18 years.

Conservation and Tourism

The IUCN assessed Banded houndsharks as Endangered in 2021. The species was previously listed as Least Concern, but a more recent assessment indicated that its population is decreasing.

Banded houndsharks are caught in trawl, longline, set-net and gillnet fisheries. They are mainly caught as bycatch, but they are often retained for human consumption across much of their range. The species is also popular in aquariums and among scuba divers.

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