click for previous page Carcharhinidae 1325 Carcharhinus albimarginatus (Rüppell, 1837) Frequent synonyms / misidentifications: None / Carcharhinus longimanus (Poey, 1861); Triaenodon obesus (Rüppell, 1837). FAO names: En - Silvertip shark; Fr - Requin pointe blanche; Sp - Tiburón de puntas blancas. Diagnostic characters: A large, slender to moderately stout shark. Snout moderately long and broadly parabolic, its length subequal to or slightly shorter than mouth width and equal to or greater than internasal space; labial furrows very short; anterior nasal flaps very low; spiracles absent; teeth with serrated edges, upper teeth broadly triangular and erect at front of mouth, progressively oblique posteriorly, without conspicuous cusplets; teeth in lower jaw erect and stout-cusped, serrated. First dorsal upper and lower fin moderately high, with a narrowly rounded apex, its ventral view of head tooth near centre origin over inner margins of pectoral fins; second dorsal fin moderately high, its origin about opposite that of anal fin, its inner margin less than twice its height, and its posterior margin nearly straight; pectoral fins long and slightly falcate, with narrow, pointed tips. Interdorsal ridge present. Colour: dorsal surface dark grey or grey-brown, ventral surface white; all fins have conspicuous white tips and posterior margins. Size: Maximum total length about 3 m; adults mature at 1.6 to 1.99 m; size at birth about 63 to 68 cm. Habitat, biology, and fisheries: A continental and insular species occurring from the surface to a depth of 800 m, close inshore in lagoons and near island dropoffs or well offshore, but not oceanic. Viviparous, number of embryos 1 to 11. Feeds on both bottom and pelagic fish, including rays and octopi. Can be aggressive to divers and is potentially dangerous. Specific information on fisheries for this species is lacking, but it is presumably taken in areas where it occurs. Probably used fresh and dried-salted for human consumption. Distribution: In the western Indian Ocean recorded from East Africa, Madagascar and the Red Sea; in the western Pacific off southern Japan, from Taiwan Province of China southwards to Indonesia, and off northern Australia, eastern New Guinea and the Solomon ? Islands; also known from the eastern Central Pacific. 1326 Sharks Carcharhinus altimus (Springer, 1950) Frequent synonyms / misidentifications: Carcharhinus radamae Fourmanoir, 1961 / Carcharhinus albimarginatus (Rüppell, 1837); C. galapagensis (Snodgrass and Heller, 1905); C. obscurus (Lesueur, 1818). FAO names: En - Bignose shark; Fr - Requin babosse (= Réquiem babosse, Area 31); Sp - Tiburón baboso. Diagnostic characters: Body slender. Snout rounded and moderately long, its length about equal to, or greater than, mouth width, and greater than internasal space; labial furrows very short; anterior nasal flaps expanded as low, broadly triangular lobes; spiracles absent; teeth with serrated edges, upper teeth broadly triangular and erect in front of mouth, with very high cusps, progressively oblique posteriorly; teeth in lower jaw erect and narrow-cusped. First dorsal fin ventral view of head upper and lower moderately high with a narrowly rounded apex, its tooth near centre origin over inner margins of pectoral fins; second dorsal fin high, its origin about opposite that of anal fin, its inner margin less than 1.5 times the fin-height; pectoral fins long and not strongly falcate, broad-tipped but with angular apices. A high interdorsal ridge present. Colour: back greyish; belly whitish; inner corners of pectoral fins blackish. Size: Maximum total length to about 3 m; commonly to 2.4 m; size at birth probably 70 to 90 cm. Habitat, biology, and fisheries: Usually found in the edges of the continental shelves and uppermost slopes near the bottom, ranging from a depth of 30 to 430 m, but commonly between 80 and 220 m; rare in shallow waters. Viviparous. Bottom-dwelling; feeds chiefly on fishes and cephalopods. Apparently taken on deep-set longlines, also in bottom trawls and probably on hook-and-line and with gill nets. Utilized for fishmeal, liver oil, and shagreen. Distribution: Circumglobal, with patchy records in tropical and warm seas. ? ? Carcharhinidae 1327 Carcharhinus amblyrhynchoides (Whitley, 1934) Frequent synonyms / misidentifications: Carcharhinus pleurotaenia (Bleeker, 1852) / Carcharhinus limbatus (Valenciennes in Müller and Henle, 1839), C. brevipinna (Müller and Henle, 1839). FAO names: En - Graceful shark; Fr - Requin gracile; Sp - Tiburón grácil. Diagnostic characters: A medium-sized stout shark. Snout pointed but short, its length less than mouth width, 1.0 to 1.2 times internasal space; labial furrows very short; anterior nasal flaps very low; no spiracles; upper and lower teeth with serrated edges, including cusps, upper teeth with narrow cusps, and no prominent cusplets, not broadly triangular, cusps of upper anterior teeth erect, laterals erect to oblique; lower teeth erect and narrow-cusped. First dorsal fin moderately ventral view of head upper and lower high, with an angular or narrowly rounded apex tooth near centre and short inner margin, its origin over inner margins of pectoral fins; origin of second dorsal fin about opposite anal-fin origin; second dorsal fin moderately high, its inner margin less than twice its height, its posterior margin concave; pectoral fins moderately long and falcate, with narrow, pointed tips. No dermal ridge between dorsal fins. Colour: grey or grey-brown on dorsal surface, white or cream below, with a conspicuous band of white on sides from pelvic fins to first dorsal fin; pectoral, dorsal, and pelvic fins, and ventral lobe of caudal fin black or dusky-tipped, sometimes inconspicuously so. Size: Maximum total length about 1.8 m; size at birth about 52 to 55 cm. Habitat, biology, and fisheries: A poorly known, inshore, coastal pelagic species. Viviparous. Feeds mainly on fish, also crustaceans and cephalopods. Taken on longlines and drifting gill nets; in the area it is caught in the Gulf of Thailand, northern Australia and probably elsewhere where it occurs. Utilized fresh and dried salted for human consumption; fins used in the oriental sharkfin trade; liver oil is processed for vitamins. ? Distribution: In the western Indian Ocean from the Gulf of Aden, southern India and Sri Lanka, in the western Pacific ? from Viet Nam, Thailand, the Philippines, Java, Borneo, Australia, and New Guinea. 1328 Sharks Carcharhinus amblyrhynchos (Bleeker, 1856) Frequent synonyms / misidentifications: Carcharhinus menisorrah (Valenciennes in Müller and Henle, 1839); ? Carcharhinus wheeleri Garrick, 1982 / None. FAO names: En -Greyreefshark;Fr - Requin dagsit; Sp - Tiburón de arrecifes. Diagnostic characters: A medium-sized shark. Body rather stout. Snout broadly rounded, its length less than mouth width, equal to or somewhat greater than internasal space; labial furrows very short; anterior nasal flaps very low, no spiracles; teeth with serrated edges but with cusplets low or absent on upper teeth, always absent on lowers; upper teeth narrowly upper and lower triangular, high, moderately narrow and ventral view of head tooth near centre erect-cusped in front of mouth, progressively oblique posteriorly; teeth in lower jaw mostly erect and narrow-cusped. First dorsal fin moderately high and with narrowly rounded apex, its origin over inner margins of pectoral fins; origin of second dorsal fin about opposite anal-fin origin; second dorsal fin moderately high, its inner margin less than 1.5 times the fin height and its posterior margin deeply notched; pectoral fins long and not strongly falcate, with narrow, angular apices. A weak interdorsal ridge present between dorsal fins, or no ridge. Colour: dark grey or bronze-grey above, white below; caudal fin with a conspicuous wide black posterior margin; undersides of pectoral and pelvic fins with black tips and posterior margins, but fins otherwise not conspicuously black, or white-tipped except for white-tipped first dorsal fin in some individuals. Size: Maximum total length about 2.55 m; commonly to 1.8 m; size at birth about 50 to 60 cm Habitat, biology, and fisheries: An inshore shark, most common over coral reefs, often near the bottom. Viviparous, number of young per litter 1 to 6. A bottom-feeding shark, eating small reef fishes and octopuses. Aggressive, particularly when attracted by spearfishing or when cornered by divers: when provoked, gives an exaggerated swimming display, with back arched and pectoral fins thrust downward, followed by a swift attack and bite if the provocation continues. Several divers have been bitten by this shark in the western Pacific, none fatally, and even small diver-operated submarines have been attacked. Fished in Thailand and elsewhere mainly for the flesh and fins. Distribution: Known from Madagascar and the Mauritius-Seychelles area, possibly also from India; also Red Sea to South Africa if Carcharhinus wheeleri is synonymized with this species; in the western Central Pacific from Sumatra eastward to the Philippines, Australia, New Guinea, Hawaii, and the Tuamotu Archipelago. Carcharhinidae 1329 Carcharhinus amboinensis (Müller and Henle, 1839) Frequent synonyms / misidentifications: Triaenodon obtusus Day, 1878 / Carcharhinus leucas (Valenciennes in Müller and Henle, 1839); Glyphis gangeticus (Müller and Henle, 1839). FAO names: En - Pigeye shark; Fr - Requin balestrine; Sp - Tiburón baleta. Diagnostic characters: A medium to large, stout-bodied shark. Snout extremely short (usually