Rusty Catshark

About the Rusty Catshark

Halaelurus sellus  

Rusty catshark

Intro:

The Rusty catshark is a marine, demersal and tropical shark found in the Eastern Indian Ocean, commonly in places like Australia.

 

Biology:

The max length is 35.3 cm (13.9 in) for a male and max length for a female is 42.3 cm (16.7 in) for a Rusty catshark.

Reproduction:

The maturity range of the Rusty catshark starts at 38 cm (15 in).

 

Behaviour:

The depth range for this species is in between 62 – 164 m(203 – 538 ft).

It may be an incidental catch in the Australian Commonwealth-managed Northern Prawn Fishery, the Western Australian Pilbara Fish Trawl Fishery, and the Northern Territory Demersal Fishery, though is not retained due to its small size and prohibitions on retention. Post-release mortality is probably low. The species has significant refuge as deeper habitats are lightly fished or unfished and there are spatial management closures across much of its range. There is no evidence of population decline and the species is not suspected to be close to reaching the population reduction threshold, and the Rusty Catshark is assessed as Least Concern. The species is not utilized due to its small size and prohibitions on retention.

There are no species-specific conservation measures. All sharks and rays are commercially protected under Western Australian law, allowing retention only within the State’s managed shark fishery or via exemption (Watt et al. 2021). Additionally, large areas of Western Australia’s north coast are permanently closed to trawling, and effort quotas in the Pilbara Fish Trawl Fishery have been reduced since 2009 (Gaughan and Santoro 2021). In 2021, the national Red List status of this species was Least Concern and in 2023, the stock was assessed as Sustainable (Kyne et al. 2021, Simpfendorfer and Rigby 2023). Further research is needed on population size and trends, and life history, and incidental catch rates should be monitored.

 

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