OdontaspididaeSand Tiger Sharks

Greek: odous = tooth/teeth, aspidos = wide shield

Diagnostic Features

• Moderately stout• Head shorter than

trunk• Gill openings

moderately large but does not extend to surface of the head

• Gills anterior to pectoral origin

• Grow up to 3.6 m

• No gillrakers• Large teeth• First dorsal large• Second dorsal and

anals almost as large as first

• Caudal: upper lobe long, lower lobe short but strong, precaudal pit

Teeth Structure

• Front teeth narrow, sharp, and pointy• Side teeth compressed and blade-like• Less than 60 rows in either jaw

Habitat and Distribution

• Tropical to Cool-temperate• Inshore and Deepwater• EVERYWHERE

• Surf-zone to Outer shelf• Down slopes up to 1600 m

Reproduction

• Ovoviviparous• Non yolk-sac placenta• Intrauterine

cannibalism• Only two pups birthed

every two years • Gestation: 9 months

Carcharius taurus embryo

Food

• Teleosts• Smaller sharks• Rays• Squid• Bottom crustaceans

Genera

• Eugomphodus/Carcharias

• Odontaspis

Eugomphodus/Carcharias

• Small eyes• Short, flattened snout• Back teeth differentiated

from side teeth, molariform

• Second dorsal as large as first

• First dorsal base closer to pelvic bases

• Anal fin as large or larger than dorsals

Carcharias taurus,

C. tricuspidatus

• Red-list:– C. taurus: vunerable– C. tricuspidatus: data deficient

• Human Interaction– Regularly caught in fisheries– Eaten in Japan, Pacific, and Britain– Fishmeal, liver oil, meat market, sharkfin soup

Odontaspis

• Moderate sized eyes• Long and conical snout• Back teeth grade into

side teeth, not molariform• Second dorsal half size of

first• First dorsal base closer to

pectoral bases• Anal smaller than second

dorsal

Odontaspis ferox,

O. noronhai

• Red-list:– O. ferox: vulnerable– O. noronhai: data deficient

• Human Interaction– No regular interaction– Eaten if caught

• Compagno, L. J. V. 1984. FAO species catalogue. Vol. 4. Sharks of the world. An annotated and illustrated catalogue of shark species known to date. Part 1. Hexanchiformes to Lamniformes. FAO Fisheries Synopsis 125: 1–249.

• Dicken, M. L., Booth, A. J., Smale, M. J., and Cliff, G. (2007). Spatial and seasonal distribution patterns of juvenile and adult raggedtooth sharks (Carcharias taurus) tagged off the east coast of South Africa. Marine and Freshwater Research 58: 127–134.

• Fergusson, I. K., Graham, K. J., and Compagno, L. V. J. (2006). Distribution, abundance and biology of the smalltooth sandtiger shark Odontaspis ferox. Environmental Biology of Fishes.

• Graham,K. J., Andrew,N. L. and Hodgson,K. E. (2001). Changes in relative abundance of sharks and rays on Australian South East Fishery trawl grounds after twenty years of fishing. Marine and Freshwater Research 52: 549–561.

• Lucifora, L. O., Menni, R. C., and Escalante, A. H. (2002). Reproductive ecology and abundance of the sand tiger shark, Carcharias taurus, from the southwestern Atlantic. ICES Journal of Marine Science 59: 553–561.

• Preziosi, Gridelli, Borghetti, Diana, Parmeggiani, Fioravanti, Marcer, Bianchi, Walsh, Berzins (2006). Spinal deformity in a sandtiger shark, Carcharias taurus: a clinical-pathological study. Journal of Fish Diseases 29: 49–60.

• Shimada, K. (2002). Teeth of Embryos in Lamniform Sharks. Environmental Biology of Fishes 63: 309-319.