Chain catshark
| Chain catshark | |
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| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Chondrichthyes |
| Subclass: | Elasmobranchii |
| Superorder: | Selachimorpha |
| Order: | Carcharhiniformes |
| Family: | Scyliorhinidae |
| Genus: | Scyliorhinus |
| Species: | S. retifer |
| Binomial name | |
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Scyliorhinus retifer (Garman, 1881) |
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| Range of the chain catshark | |
| Synonyms | |
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Scyllium retiferum Garman, 1881 |
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Scyllium retiferum Garman, 1881
The chain catshark or chain dogfish (Scyliorhinus retifer) is a small, reticulated catshark that is biofluorescent. The species is common in the West Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico from George's Bank in Massachusetts, to Nicaragua. It is harmless and rarely encountered by humans. It has very similar reproductive traits to the small-spotted catshark (S. canicula).
The chain catshark is one of four elasmobranch species shown to possesses biofluorescent properties. The researchers of the study examined the vision of Scyliorhinus retifer using microspectrophotometry and designed a "shark-eye" camera that yielded contrast information on areas where fluorescence is anatomically distributed on the shark. The repeated evolution of biofluorescence in elasmobranchs, coupled with a visual adaptation to detect it; and evidence that biofluorescence creates greater luminosity contrast with the surrounding background, highlights the potential importance of biofluorescence in elasmobranch behavior and biology.
In the Mid-Atlantic Bight, the chain dogfish is found along the outer continental shelf and upper slope. The shark occupies depths of 58 to 359 meters (190 to 1,178 ft) and occupies shallower depths in the northern region compared to southern areas. Due to the shark’s depth distribution, it has been suggested that the shark does not perform large-scale migrations.
Temperature is thought to limit the shark’s distribution in northern areas, particularly during the winter. Although bands of warm water at the edge of the shelf have been observed, the temperature varies seasonally, thus limiting this non-migratory species.
Sizes of the species range from 0.36 feet (0.11 m) (immature), to 1.5 feet (0.46 m) (adult). Females tend to be larger at maturity, being 1.7 feet (0.52 m) long compared to their male counterparts at 1.64 feet (0.50 m).
Jaws
Upper teeth
Lower teeth
The catshark spends the daytime resting at the bottom, usually in contact with certain structures. It has been observed with large burrowing cerianthid anemone tubes and boulders. The bottom rubble is thought to be used as a camouflage with the shark’s spotted surface. Adult sharks tend to prefer rough bottoms, creating a difficulty for trawl sampling, while the immature forms are found near smoother regions. The chain catshark has been known to feed on squid, bony fish, polychaetes and crustaceans. In aquaria, they are relatively motionless, only swimming occasionally.
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Wikipedia