Angelshark

Angel sharks
Sand devil, Squatina dumeril
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Chondrichthyes
Order:	Squatiniformes Buen, 1926
Family:	Squatinidae Bonaparte, 1838
Genus:	Squatina Duméril, 1806
Species
(16 species, see text)

The angel sharks are an unusual group of sharks, with their flattened bodies and broad pectoral fins that give them a strong resemblance to skates and rays. The 16-odd known species are all classified in a single genus Squatina belonging to its own family Squatinidae and order Squatiniformes. They occur worldwide in temperate and tropical seas.

While the forward part of the body is broad and flattened, the rear part retains a muscular appearance more typical of other sharks. The eyes and spiracles are on top, and the five gill slits are on bottom. Both the pectorals and the pelvic fins are large and held horizontally. There are two dorsal fins, no anal fin, and unusually for sharks, the lower lobe of the caudal fin is longer than the upper lobe. Most types grow to a length of 1.5 meters (5 ft), with the Japanese angel shark Squatina japonica known to reach 2 meters.

Angel sharks are bottom-dwellers, burying themselves in sand or mud, then lunging to snap up prey, which includes fish, crustaceans, and various types of mollusks. The Pacific angel shark Squatina californica is also known to leave the bottom at night to forage. Although they are not normally aggressive, they do bite when stepped on or handled.

Angel sharks are ovoviviparous, with litters known up to 13 pups.

The sharks were long considered of no commercial interest, but in 1978, Michael Wagner, a fish processor in Santa Barbara, California began to promote angel sharks, and 310 metric tons were taken off California in 1984. The fishery devastated the population, and is now regulated.

Angel sharks have been declared a Critically Endangered species by the World Conservation Union (IUCN). Their numbers have deteriorated so much that in some bodies of water, including the North Sea, they have become extinct.

Species

• Sawback angel shark, Squatina aculeata Cuvier, 1829 188 cm [1]
• African angel shark, Squatina africana Regan, 1908 80 cm [2]
• Argentine angel shark, Squatina argentina (Marini, 1930) 170 cm [3]
• Australian angel shark, Squatina australis Regan, 1906 152 cm [4]
• Pacific angel shark, Squatina californica Ayres, 1859 152 cm [5]
• Sand devil, Squatina dumeril Lesueur, 1818 152 cm [6]
• Taiwan angel shark, Squatina formosa Shen & Ting, 1972 [7]
• Angular angel shark, Squatina guggenheim Marini, 1936 [8]
• Japanese angel shark, Squatina japonica Bleeker, 1858 200 cm [9]
• Clouded angel shark, Squatina nebulosa Regan, 1906 [10]
• Smoothback angel shark, Squatina occulta Vooren & da Silva, 1992 [11]
• Squatina punctata Marini, 1936 [12]
• Squatina squatina (Linnaeus, 1758), 183 cm [13]
• Ornate angel shark, Squatina tergocellata McCulloch, 1914 100 cm [14]
• Ocellated angel shark, Squatina tergocellatoides Chen, 1963 63 cm [15]

References

• "Squatina". Integrated Taxonomic Information System. 4 May. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= and |year= / |date= mismatch (help)

See also

• List of sharks

External links

• Reefquest page on angel sharks
• Monterey Bay Aquarium page on Pacific angel shark