Bignose Shark

About the Bignose Shark

The Big-nose shark is a deep-water species of requiem shark found in war-temperate and tropical waters around the globe. They live on continental shelves at depths of 0 m to 810 m (0–2,657 ft), although they are more common between 90 m and 430 m (295–1,410 ft).

Biology and Behaviour

They are grey or bronze on their topside and white underneath, with closely spaced, oval -shaped dermal denticles. The species has a broad, bluntly pointed snout with prominent nostril flaps, which explains the origin of its common name. Males reach maturity at 2.16 m (7.1 ft) and females at about 2.26 m (7.4 ft). The species can reach at least 3 m (9.8 ft) in total length, and the heaviest specimen ever recorded was 168 kg (370 lb).

During the day, adults are often close to the seafloor, but they may move toward shallower water or closer to the surface at night. They subsist predominantly on a diet of bony fishes, cartilaginous fishes (including other sharks) and cephalopods.

Reproduction

Bignose sharks are viviparous, meaning embryos develop inside the mother’s body and are nourished through a placental connection. The average litter size ranges from 3 to 15 pups, and females appear to reproduce every two years. The size at birth is approximately 60 cm to 90 cm (23.6–35.4 in).

Conservation

The Bignose Shark is caught as bycatch in pelagic longline, purse seine, gillnet and bottom-trawl fisheries, and may be retained for its meat, fins, skin, liver oil and cartilage. In parts of the Caribbean, it has been fished for its liver oil and its skin to make leather. In Southeast Asia, it may also be retained for their meat and fins.

The species is currently listed as Near Threatened by the IUCN. Population monitoring remains limited, and the Bignose Shark may sometimes be misidentified as the Sandbar Shark. However, available evidence suggests a population decline of approximately 20% to 29% over the past 60 years.

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