Japanese Wobbegong

About the Japanese Wobbegong

The Japanese wobbegong shark is a carpet shark found inshore, usually in sand or sandy mud bottoms as well as on rocky and coral reefs. This species is native to the Western and Northern Pacific and is common from Japan to Viet Nam.

Biology and Behaviour:

The Japanese wobbegong shark is a small to medium size shark that has dark and light splotchy brown patterns on its  broad wide head, flat body and long tail. The mouth of the Japanese wobbegong has antenna like-flaps that fold over the mouth. This species can grow up to a maximum length of about 118 cm. The Japanese wobbegong shark is a bottom feeder that feeds on bottom invertebrates, shark egg cases and shrimp. It is a nocturnal species that is active at night and has a depth range of 0 to 200 m.

Reproduction:

Sexual maturity starts at about 100 cm in length.s Japanese wobbegongs give birth to live pups, with embryos feeding solely on yolk. After a 12 month development period in the mother they can have about 20 to 27 pups per litter. The pup’s at birth is about 21 to 23 cm in length.

Conservation:

There isn’t sufficient data to about this shark, but it’s known that they’re caught in bottom set gillnets, which causes decline in other wobbegongs’ populations. They could be threatened or become threatened soon.

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