- Classification
- CHONDRICHTHYES
- ORECTOLOBIFORMES
- HEMISCYLLIIDAE
- Hemiscyllium
Genus Hemiscyllium
Summary:
A genus of small, distinctly patterned sharks, found in the Australia-New Guinea region and the nearby eastern Indonesian island of Halmahera. Species are characterised by having nasoral and perioral grooves, short nasal barbels, a small transverse mouth below the eyes, two similar-sized dorsal fins, and a long slender tail.
Hemiscyllids are small (usually less than about 85 cm TL and frequently less than 70 cm TL), nocturnally active, bottom-living sharks, which exhibit a peculiar “crawling” gait while foraging for benthic invertebrates and fishes.
Hemiscyllium is from the Latin hemi, meaning half and the Latinized scyllium (from the Greek skylion), meaning dogfish.
Hemiscyllids are small (usually less than about 85 cm TL and frequently less than 70 cm TL), nocturnally active, bottom-living sharks, which exhibit a peculiar “crawling” gait while foraging for benthic invertebrates and fishes.
Hemiscyllium is from the Latin hemi, meaning half and the Latinized scyllium (from the Greek skylion), meaning dogfish.
Author: Bray, D.J. 2020
Cite this page as:
Bray, D.J. 2020, Hemiscyllium in Fishes of Australia, accessed 05 Oct 2024, https://fishesofaustralia.net.au/Home/genus/651
References
Allen, G.R., Erdmann, M.V., White, W.T., Fahmi & Dudgeon, C.L. 2016. Review of the bamboo shark genus Hemiscyllium (Orectolobiformes: Hemiscyllidae). Journal of the Ocean Science Foundation 23: 51–97. PDF Open access
Dudgeon, C.L., Corrigan, C., Yang, L., Allen, G.R., Erdmann, M.V., Fahmi, Sugeha, H.Y., White, W.T., Naylor, G.J.P. 2020. Walking, swimming or hitching a ride? Phylogenetics and biogeography of the walking shark genus Hemiscyllium. Marine and Freshwater Research,
Last, P.R. & Stevens, J.D. 2009. Sharks and rays of Australia. Second edition. CSIRO, Australia, 656 pp