Bigeye Sand Tiger

Shark Database | Mackerel Sharks - Lamniformes | Bigeye Sand Tiger

About the Bigeye Sand Tiger

The Bigeye Sand Tiger is a rare deepwater pelagic shark that is widely but sparsely distributed in tropical and subtropical waters. This species belongs to the Odontaspididae family.

Biology

The species was described by Maul in 1955 from a specimen collected in Madeira in 1941. The snout is conical and bulbous, with a rounded tip. The eyes are large and ovoid, and a nictitating membrane is absent. . The body is uniformly chocolate-brown, while the fins, except for the pectoral fins, have a thin dark edge along their posterior margins.

The species can reach approximately 4.27 m (14.0 ft) in total length. Males mature at around 3.26 to 3.42 m (10.7–11.2 ft) in length, while females reach maturity at approximately 3.26 m (10.7 ft).

Reproduction

The Bigeye Sand Tiger life cycle and biology remain poorly known. Its reproductive biology is presumed to be similar to other lamnoid sharks, including the Sand Tiger Shark (Carcharias taurus). This species is likely ovoviviparous, with embryos possibly feeding on unfertilized eggs produced by the mother after the yolk sac has been absorbed.

Habitat

This shark is very rarely recorded, but it may have a wide but discontinuous distribution in the Atlantic and Indo-Pacific Oceans. It appears to live mainly in deep open-ocean waters and in the mesopelagic zone, at depths ranging from 35 m to more than 1,000 m (115–3,280 ft).

Conservation

Odontaspis noronhai is rarely captured by fisheries. However, it may occasionally be caught by deepwater fisheries, including pelagic gillnets, purse seines, and deep-set longlines. Retention of the Bigeye Sand Tiger has been prohibited in United States Atlantic fisheries since 1997, but no other species-specific conservation measures are currently in place. The species is listed as Least Concern by the IUCN because it primarily inhabits mesopelagic waters, where its overlap with fishing gear is limited.

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