Western Spotted Catshark

About the Western Spotted Catshark

The Western Spotted Catshark is a species of catsharks member of the family Scyliorhinidae, found only around Southwestern Australia.

This species is a medium-size pale shark, yellow and green colour with 8 to 9 pale brownish saddles on the upper surface and sides, cover with sharply defined, black spots. Males and females reach a maximum size of 60.1 cm/1 ft 11.7 in TL and 53.0 cm/1.74 ft TL, respectively, with males maturing at 58 cm/1.90 ft TL. The biology of this species is almost entirely unknown. Reproduction is oviparous, with eggs being laid in pairs and embryos feeding solely on the yolk. No more information regarding this species’ reproduction is available.

The Western Spotted Catshark is a pelagic-oceanic species found on the outer continental shelf at depths of 98 – 400 m (322–1,312 ft). This shark is distributed off the Southwestern coast of Australia from Fowlers Bay to Perth.

This species is incidentally caught and discarded in very low levels in the Great Australian Bight Otter Trawl sector of the Southern and Eastern Scalefish and Shark Fishery, and may occasionally be incidentally caught in the Australian Commonwealth-managed Western Deepwater Trawl Fishery in Western Australia. The Australian Commonwealth Marine Park network would offer some refuge to this species, along with its use of deeper waters in its southern Western Australian range. There is no evidence of population decline and the species is not suspected to be close to reaching the population reduction threshold. Therefore, the Western Spotted Catshark is assessed as Least Concern.

There are no species-specific measures in place. In Western Australia, retention of sharks and rays outside of specifically managed shark fisheries has been prohibited since 2006 (Evans and Molony 2010), and so any incidental catch of this species is released. The species would receive refuge in the various marine protected areas in the Australian Commonwealth Marine Park network that overlap with its range, which includes zoning and gear restrictions (Parks Australia 2025). 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, trends and life history, and catch rates should be monitored.

 

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Western Spotted Catshark Gallery