Distribution, abundance and biology of the smalltooth sandtiger shark Odontaspis ferox (Risso, 1810) (Lamniformes: Odontaspididae)

Abstract

The smalltooth sandtiger shark, Odontaspis ferox, has a cosmopolitan distribution across warm temperate and tropical waters, and although essentially demersal, it has also been captured pelagically in mid-ocean. The species often occurs inshore at steeply shelving coastal and insular locations, and has now been identified by divers at eight widely separated shallow water sites. In the Southern Hemisphere, most O. ferox were caught by trawl on the continental slope, where its bathic range was extended to at least 880 m. Large specimens (>200 cm TL) were found across the whole depth range, but almost all juveniles were caught between 200 and 600 m. The largest recorded male was 344 cm TL, and female 450 cm TL.

Summary of South American records of the smalltooth sand tiger shark Odontaspis ferox (Chondrichthyes: Odontaspidae), with the first record from Chilean waters

“…Throughout their seemingly fragmented range O. ferox are widespread, though uncommon, and as new records fill in gaps of their biogeography, the species appears to have a cosmopolitan distribution in tropical and temperate coastal waters (Bonfil, 1995;Fergusson et al, 2008). Such a pattern has been seen for other deep-water shark species where presumed isolated records are part of a much broader and likely continuous distribution that becomes more apparent as additional specimens are observed or collected (see Long et al, 2011, as an example).…”

“…The smalltooth sand tiger shark Odontaspis ferox (Risso, 1810) has a seemingly cosmopolitan distribution based on disjunct and widespread records from the Pacific, Atlantic, and Indian Oceans, with most of these localities based on few, or even single specimens or confirmed observations (Bonfil, 1995;Fergusson et al, 2008). In the eastern Pacific Ocean, the species ranges from the northernmost records off southern California, USA (Daugherty, 1964;Seigel & Compagno, 1986;Long, 1994) and northern Baja California, Mexico (Long, unpublished data), and in the Sea of Cortez (Gulf of California) (Galvan-Magaña et al, 1989;Abita-Cardenas et al, 1994;Villavicencio-Garayzar, 1996;Castro-Aguirre & Balart, 1996).…”

“…There appear to be no records of this species from most of the Central American coast, but it has been observed from Cocos Island off the Pacific coast of Costa Rica (Cortés & Blum, 2008;Cortés et al, 2012;Cortés, 2013). The few South American records of this species include observations of living specimens at Malpelo Island off the Pacific coast of Colombia (Mejía-Falla et al, 2007;Fergusson et al, 2008) and observations at Wolf Island in the northernmost Galápagos Archipelago (Acuña-Marrero et al, 2013;Ritter & Compagno, 2013). To date, there have been no other records of O. ferox from the western coast of South America (Fergusson et al, 2008;Compagno, 2001) and our observation (Figures 1 & 2) makes it the first recorded occurrence for this species in Chilean waters, the southernmost record in the eastern Pacific ocean, and one of just a few specimens documented along the entire Pacific and Atlantic coasts of South America.…”

Occurrence of the vulnerable smalltooth sand tiger shark, Odontaspis ferox , in the Canary Islands, first evidence of philopatry

“…The smalltooth sand tiger shark Odontaspis ferox (Odontaspididae) is a demersal offshore species (Acuña-Marrero, Zimmerhackel, Mayorga, & Hearn, 2013) inhabiting deep waters along continental and oceanic shelves and upper slopes, at depths ranging from 10 to 883 m (Fergusson, Graham, & Compagno, 2008). It has a circumglobal but patchy distribution throughout warm temperate and tropical waters (Compagno, 2001); and it is considered unusual encountered, or naturally has low population numbers (Bonfil, 1995).…”

Review of the Diversity, Ecology, and Conservation of Elasmobranchs in the Azores Region, Mid-North Atlantic

“…International and regional legislation also regulate the use of fishing nets in the area (European Council, 2005), banning the use of bottom and pelagic trawls within an area roughly coinciding with the EEZ (European Council, 1995). The local fishery is typically artisanal and essentially composed of small (<15 m) vessels using hooks and lines (longlines, handlines, pole-and-line; Pinho and Menezes, 2009;Carvalho et al, 2011;Morato, 2012).…”