Squaliolus Laticaudus in the Western North Atlantic Ocean: Distributional and Life History Observations
The spined pygmy shark (Squaliolus laticaudus Smith and Radcliffe, 1912) is among the smallest known species of sharks and despite its wide distribution, fewer than 100 specimens have been reported globally. On 28 October 2007, 24 spined pygmy sharks, with total lengths ranging
from 120 to 210 mm, were collected in a single deepwater trawl in the northern Gulf of Mexico. All specimens, with the exception of two females, were immature. Follicle conditions in the two mature females indicated that vitellogenesis and gestation are consecutive. The stomachs of six specimens
contained single cephalopod or teleost prey. Our catch and examinations of museum accessed specimens confirm the questioned presence of spined pygmy sharks in the Gulf of Mexico and demonstrate that it is more widely distributed in the western North Atlantic Ocean than previously known.
Document Type: Research Article
Publication date: 01 October 2010
- The Bulletin of Marine Science is dedicated to the dissemination of high quality research from the world's oceans. All aspects of marine science are treated by the Bulletin of Marine Science, including papers in marine biology, biological oceanography, fisheries, marine affairs, applied marine physics, marine geology and geophysics, marine and atmospheric chemistry, and meteorology and physical oceanography.
- Editorial Board
- Information for Authors
- Subscribe to this Title
- Terms & Conditions
- Ingenta Connect is not responsible for the content or availability of external websites
- Access Key
- Free content
- Partial Free content
- New content
- Open access content
- Partial Open access content
- Subscribed content
- Partial Subscribed content
- Free trial content