4.11.1 Elasmobranch Fishes

4.11 [Other species which are not deep water or highly migratory] 4.11.1 Elasmobranch fishes Approximately 145 chondrichthyan species are listed as occurring in European waters (Table 4.11.1.1; Bailly et al., 2001), though this includes many species that are found either in the Mediterranean, or that have northerly records in the NE Atlantic off either Northwest Africa or Madeira (i.e. south of ICES Division IX). Many of these species are deep-water species for which the biology is poorly known. 2-958 ICES Advice 2004, ACFM/ACE Report Table 4.11.1.1 List of chondrichthyan fishes reported to occur in European seas (following Bailly et al., 2001). Common name Latin name 1 Sharpnose sevengill shark Heptranchias perlo 2 Bluntnose sixgill shark Hexanchus griseus 3 Bigeye sixgill shark Hexanchus nakamurai 4 Frilled shark Chlamydoselachus anguineus 5 Whale shark Rhincodon typus 6 Nurse shark Ginglymostoma cirratum 7 Sant tiger shark Carcharias taurus 8 Smalltooth sand tiger Odontaspis ferox 9 Bigeye sand tiger Odontaspis noronhai 10 Goblin shark Mitsukurina owstoni 11 Great white shark Carcharodon carcharias 12 Shorfin mako Isurus oxyrinchus 13 Longfin mako Isurus paucus 14 Porbeagle shark Lamna nasus 15 Basking shark Cetorhinus maximus 16 Bigeye thresher Alopias superciliosus 17 Thresher shark Alopias vulpinus 18 Apristurus aphyodes 19 Iceland catshark Apristurus laurussonii 20 Ghost catshark Apristurus manis 21 Smalleye catshark Apristurus microps 22 Largenose catshark Apristurus nasutus 23 Atlantic sawtail catshark Galeus atlanticus 24 Blackmouthed dogfish Galeus melastomus 25 Mouse catshark Galeus murinus 26 Lesser-spotted dogfish Scyliorhinus canicula 27 Nurse hound Scyliorhinus stellaris 28 False catshark Pseudotriakis microdon 29 Barbeled hound shark Leptocharias smithii 30 Tope shark Galeorhinus galeus 31 Starry smooth hound Mustelus asterias 32 Smooth hound Mustelus mustelus 33 Blackspot smooth hound Mustelus punctulatus 34 Atlantic weasel shark Paragaleus pectoralis 35 Bignose shark Carcharhinus altimus 36 Spinner shark Carcharhinus brevipinna 37 Silky shark Carcharhinus falciformis 38 Galapagos shark Carcharhinus galapagensis 39 Finetooth shark Carcharhinus isodon 40 Bull shark Carcharhinus leucas 41 Blacktip shark Carcharhinus limbatus 42 Oceanic whitetip shark Carcharhinus longimanus 43 Blacktip reef shark Carcharhinus melanopterus 44 Dusky shark Carcharhinus obscurus 45 Sandbar shark Carcharhinus plumbeus 46 Night shark Carcharhinus signatus 47 Tiger shark Galeocerdo cuvier 48 Lemon shark Negaprion brevirostris 49 Blue shark Prionace glauca 50 Milk shark Rhizoprionodon acutus ICES Advice 2004, ACFM/ACE Report 2-959 51 Scalloped hammerhead Sphyrna lewini 52 Great hammerhead Sphyrna mokarran 53 Smalleye hamerhead Sphyrna tudes 54 Smooth hammerhead Sphyrna zygaena 55 Black dogfish Centroscyllium fabricii 56 Great lantern shark Etmopterus princeps 57 Smooth lantern shark Etmopterus pusillus 58 Velvet belly Etmopterus spinax 59 Portuguese dogfish Centroscymnus coelolepis 60 Longnose velvet dogfish Centroscymnus crepidater 61 Shortnose velvet dogfish Centroscymnus cryptacanthus 62 Azores dogfish Scymnodalatias garricki 63 Scymnodon obscurus 64 Knifetooth dogfish Scymnodon ringens 65 Greenland shark Somniosus microcephalus 66 Little sleeper shark Somniosus rostratus 67 Angular roughshark Oxynotus centrina 68 Sailfin roughshark Oxynotus paradoxus 69 Kitefin shark Dalatias licha 70 Spined pygmy shark Squaliolus laticaudus 71 Gulper shark Centrophorus granulosus 72 Lowfin gulper shark Centrophorus lusitanicus 73 Leafscale gulper shark Centrophorus squamosus 74 Centrophorus uyato 75 Birdbeak dogfish Deania calcea 76 Rough longnose dogfish Deania hystricosa 77 Arrowhead dogfish Deania profundorum 78 Spurdog Squalus acanthias 79 Longnose spurdog Squalus blainvillei 80 Shortnose spurdog Squalus megalops 81 Bramble shark Echinorhinus brucus 82 Sawback angel shark Squatina aculeata 83 Smoothback angel shark Squatina oculata 84 Angel shark Squatina squatina 85 Smalltooth sawfish Pristis pectinata 86 Common sawfish Pristis pristis 87 Electric ray Torpedo nobiliana 88 Marbled electric ray Torpedo marmorata 89 Common electric ray Torpedo torpedo 90 Blackchin guitarfish Rhinobatos cemiculus 91 Common guitarfish Rhinobatos rhinobatos 92 Arctic skate Amblyraja hyperborea 93 Jensen's skate Amblyraja jenseni 94 Thorny skate/Starry ray Amblyraja radiata 95 Pallid skate Bathyraja pallida 96 Richardson's skate Bathyraja richardsoni 97 Spinetail skate Bathyraja spinicauda 98 Common skate Dipturus batis 99 Sailray Dipturus linteus 100 Norwegian skate Dipturus nidarosiensis 101 Long-nose skate Dipturus oxyrinchus 102 Sandy ray Leucoraja circularis 2-960 ICES Advice 2004, ACFM/ACE Report 103 Shagreen ray Leucoraja fullonica 104 Maltese skate Leucoraja melitensis 105 Cuckoo ray Leucoraja naevus 106 Krefft's skate Malacoraja kreffti 107 Prickled skate Malacoraja spinacidermis 108 Blue pygmy skate Neoraja caerulea 109 African skate Raja africana 110 Atlantic starry skate Raja asterias 111 Blonde ray Raja brachyura 112 Thornback ray Raja clavata 113 Madeira skate Raja maderensis 114 Smalleyed ray Raja microocellata 115 Brown ray Raja miraletus 116 Spotted ray Raja montagui 117 Speckled skate Raja polystigma 118 Rough skate Raja radula 119 Rondelet's skate Raja rondeleti 120 Undulate ray Raja undulata 121 Deepwater skate Rajella bathyphila 122 Bigelow's skate Rajella bigelowi 123 Round skate Rajella fyllae 124 Mid-Atlantic skate Rajella kukujevi 125 White skate Rostroraja alba 126 Roughtail stingray Dasyatis centroura 127 Common stingray Dasyatis pastinaca 128 Tortonese's stingray Dasyatis tortonesei 129 Pelagic stingray Dasyatis violacea 130 Leopars stingray Himantura uarnak 131 Round fantail stingray Taeniura grabata 132 Spiny butterfly ray Gymnura altavela 133 Eagle ray Myliobatis aquila 134 Bull ray Pteromylaeus bovinus 135 Lusitanean cownose ray Rhinoptera marginata 136 Manta Manta birostris 137 Giant devil ray Mobula mobular 138 Sicklefin devil ray Mobula tarapacana 139 Rabbit fish Chimaera monstrosa 140 Small-eyed rabbitfish Hydrolagus affinis 141 Large-eyed rabbitfish Hydrolagus mirabilis 142 Hydrolagus pallidus 143 Smallspine spookfish Harriotta haeckeli 144 Narrownose chimaera Harriotta raleighana 145 Spearnose chimaera Rhinochimaera atlantica ICES Advice 2004, ACFM/ACE Report 2-961 Stock status Assessment of the status of deepwater sharks and of pelagic sharks is particularly difficult owing to a lack of species- specific catch data and the straddling and/or highly migratory nature of these stocks. A summary of information on individual species is provided below. Many species of sharks and rays are characterized by life history strategies characterised by long life-spans, high age at maturity, and slow growth. Experience shows that species with such conservative life history strategies can be depleted very quickly and that recovery will be slow. Regeneration and growth are so slow that abundance does not increase in the depleted populations in the short or medium term. Most, though not all elasmobranchs in the ICES area, have exhibited declines under pressure of exploitation. Those with conservative life-histories have shown the strongest declines. Data Fisheries data for elasmobranchs in the ICES area are very poor. Many species are landed and reported using generic categories. Some species are landed and identified by species, for example spurdog. But landings data for this species are confused by the practice of combining spurdogs with other species in categories such as dogfish and hounds or various dogs . ICES is still in the process of disaggregating these generic sharks categories. Ray and skate landings data are mostly generic, though a few countries collect species-specific information. The generic data for each area must be disaggregated using market-sampling. Such sampling is now being carried out in EU countries under the Data Collection Regulation. In most areas, 4 or 5 ray species comprise the catches. Historical data will be more problematic to split. Particular problems arise with pelagic sharks, mainly caught in tuna and billfish fisheries. For this group, none of the main fishing countries collect species-specific data, nor even data that could allow identification of landings as pelagic sharks. The use of the category n.e.i. sharks not elsewhere identified is widespread for pelagic sharks. For mako and blue sharks, ICES is only a small part of the stock area and efforts at assessment have been by ICCAT. However, the lack of complete catch, landings or dead discards data has hampered these efforts. There is in particular a lack of data from the ICES area for these pelagic sharks. In the case of deepwater sharks, the data quality is also poor. The particular problem here is the use, by many countries, of sharks not elsewhere identified category. A few countries have species-specific landings data, though fewer have all their deepwater shark landings so classified. Some countries do have a category for deepwater sharks, separated from pelagic or demersal forms. But it is still difficult to disaggregate these by species (there are two main commercially exploited deepwater species). It is planned that, by 2005, ICES will have disaggregated all elasmobranch catch data into species categories and by species, as far as possible. Catch quotas only exist for rays and skates in the North Sea, and for non-EU vessels targeting some species such as porbeagle, spurdog and basking shark in EU waters. The accuracy of the landings data

Load more