Birdbeak Dogfish

About the Birdbeak Dogfish

The Birdbeak Dogfish is a dogfish shark of the family Centrophoridae, mainly found in the Pacific Ocean, Southern Australia and the Atlantic Ocean.  

Biology and Description:

The Birdbeak Dogfish has a very long, narrow snout, no anal fin and low dorsal fins with grooved spines. The pectoral fins are small and triangular with pitchfork-like denticles. Males reach maturity at 80 cm TL and females at 90 cm TL. This species reaches a maximum size of 120 cm TL. The reproduction mode is ovoviviparous with 6 to 12 young in a litter. Their gestation period is non-seasonal and the breeding cycle is non-continuous. The size at birth ranges from 29 to 34 cm TL and embryos feed solely on the yolk. Their diet consists of fish, cephalopods, and crustaceans. There appears to be size and sex segregation by depth, females being rarely caught around their common areas.

Habitat:

The Birdbeak Dogfish is a bathydemersal deepwater shark with a wide but patchy distribution. Found on the outer continental and insular shelves and upper slope, usually on or near the bottom. Its distribution ranges from Eastern Atlantic (Iceland to Angola Bay, South Africa), Western Pacific (southern Japan, Australia, and New Zealand) Eastern Pacific (from northern  Peru to southern Chile).

Conservation:

This species is usually taken by trawl, hook, and gillnet as a target and bycatch species for its liver oil and flesh. In 2002, regulation in the South East Trawl fishery in Australia prohibit the landings of livers unless the accompanying carcass is also landed.

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Birdbeak Dogfish Gallery