Max length : 140 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 5578); common length : 100.0 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 26999)
Length at first maturity
, range 75 - 90 cm
Environment
Demersal; marine; depth range ? - 100 m (Ref. 5578), usually 30 - 70 m (Ref. 10730)
Climate / Range
Tropical; 30°N -
Eastern Atlantic: Cape Verde and Mauritania to northern Namibia (Ref. 244, 5578); possibly extending north to Morocco. Record from the Northwest Atlantic, specifically in New England, has not been verified even after an extensive survey of the area has been conducted. Countries | FAO areas | Ecosystems | Occurrences | Introductions
Short description
Dorsalspines
(total): 0;
Analspines: 0. A slender weasel shark with a moderately long snout, large eyes, and a short, small mouth with small, serrated upper teeth and erect-cusped lower teeth (Ref. 5578). Light grey or bronze with longitudinal yellow stripes, fins plain; white below (Ref. 5578).
A very common inshore to offshore shark of the continental shelf occurring at depths of a few meters to slightly over 100 m (Ref. 244). A specialist feeder that prefers cephalopods, also feeds on small bony fishes (Ref. 244). Viviparous (Ref. 50449). Utilized fresh and dried salted for human consumption, and processed into fishmeal (Ref. 244).
