Longnose Velvet Dogfish

About the Longnose Velvet Dogfish

The Centroselachus Crepidater, also known as the Longnose Velvet Dogfish, is a sleeper shark of the Somniosidae family, found circumglobal in southern hemisphere subtropical seas. This is a fairly common but poorly studied species with a wide but patchy distribution.

Biology:

The Longnose Velvet Dogfish Shark is of a black or brownish colour, dorsal fins with very small fin spines, it has a long snout, a greatly elongated labial furrows that nearly encircle the mouth, with lanceolate upper teeth and bladelike lower teeth with moderate cups. It has a fairly slender body that does not taper abruptly from the pectoral region and moderately large trunk denticles with partly smooth, oval crowns in adults. They reach maturity at about 15 years at 64cm for males and 22 years at 82 cm for females. The maximum reported length in males is of 130 cm TL reaching an age of 54 years.

The species feeds mainly on fish and cephalopods. In the Rockall Trough in the northeastern Atlantic, the diet is dominated by squid and micronekton fish including myctophids.

Reproduction:

This species is ovoviviparous, with 4-8 pups in a litter. The reported size at birth ranges from 28 – 35 cm TL. Distinct pairing with embrace. The productivity of this species appears to be low. The lack of a seasonal pattern to reproduction with females breeding throughout the year means that the gestation period is currently unknown.

Habitat:

Demersal on the slope in depths of 270 to 1,300 m. this species occurs mainly around the eastern Atlantic, Indian Ocean, Eastern Pacific, and the western Pacific, from New Zealand and southern Australia.

Conservation and Threats:

The species is coming under increased fishing pressure with the extension of deepwater trawl grounds and restricted access to more desirable deep water teleosts such as orange roughy. Mayli a bycatch species but it is often targeted for both its oil and flesh. There is currently a conservation action in place for this species, which consists of the 2002 regulations in the South East Trawl Fishery in Australia that prohibits the landings of livers unless the accompanying carcass is also landed.

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Scientific NameCentroselachus crepidater
OrderDog and Angelfish Sharks - Squaliformes
GenusCentroselachus
CitesNot Listed
IUCNLeast Concern
ReproductionOvoviviparous
SizeSmall
Common Length64 - 82 cm
Max Lenght130 cm
Depth Range270 - 1300 m
DistributionSouthwest Pacific, Northeast Atlantic, Eastern Central Atlantic, Southeast Atlantic, Eastern Indian Ocean, Western Indian Ocean
EnvironmentBathydemersal, Marine