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Classification
CHONDRICHTHYES

Fish Classification
Class
CHONDRICHTHYES Sharks, rays ...
Order
CARCHARHINIFORMES(9)Ground Sharks CHIMAERIFORMES(3)Chimaeras HETERODONTIFORMES(1)Bullhead Sharks HEXANCHIFORMES(2)Sixgill, Sevengills LAMNIFORMES(8)Mackeral Sharks MYLIOBATIFORMES(9) ORECTOLOBIFORMES(7) PRISTIFORMES(1)Sawfishes PRISTIOPHORIFORMES(1) RAJIFORMES(3) RHINOPRISTIFORMES(5)Guitarfishes SQUALIFORMES(7)Dogfish Sharks SQUATINIFORMES(1) TORPEDINIFORMES(3)Electric rays

Summary
References

Class CHONDRICHTHYES

Common name: Sharks, rays, skates and chimaeras

Summary:

Sharks, rays, skates and chimaeras of the Class Chondrichthyes are the oldest group of living jawed vertebrates. Studies have shown that chondrichthyans diverged from the common ancestor of bony fishes and higher vertebrates about 530 million years ago.

Although there are an estimated 1250 shark, ray and chimaera species worldwide, this number may seriously underestimate the actual number of species.

Naylor et al. (2012) sequenced DNA from more than 4000 shark and ray specimens, representing 574 species. Of these, about 14% may be undescribed - presumably because they closely resemble known species.

Sharks and rays are key predators in the marine environment, but life cycles and population numbers of many species are poorly understood.

According to the IUCN (International Union for the Conservation of Nature), many sharks and rays are under threat from overfishing. The finding of many undescribed species may mean that some sharks and rays are even more endangered than previously thought.

Author: Bray, D.J. 2017

Cite this page as:

Sharks, rays ..., CHONDRICHTHYES in Fishes of Australia, accessed 11 Apr 2025, https://fishesofaustralia.net.au/home/class/4

References

Aschliman, N.C. & Nishida, M. & Miya, M. & Inoue, J.G. & Rosana, K.M. & Naylor, G.J.P. 2012. Body plan convergence in the evolution of skates and rays (Chondrichthyes: Batoidea). Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 63(1): 28-42

Bernal, D., C. Sepulveda, O. Mathieu-Costello & J. B. Graham. 2003. Comparative studies of high performance swimming in sharks I. Red muscle morphometrics, vascularization, and ultrastructure. Journal of Experimental Biology 206: 2831–2843.

Bigelow, H.B. & Schroeder, W.C. 1953. Chimaeroids. pp. 515-588, figs 118-127 in Parr, A.E. (ed.). Fishes of the western North Atlantic. Memoir Sears Foundation of Marine Research 1(2): 1-599.

Bozzano, A. & Collin, S.P. 2000. Retinal ganglion cell topography in elasmobranchs. Brain Behav. Evol. 55: 191-208.

Cavanagh R.D., Kyne, P.M., Fowler, S.L., Musick, J.A. & Bennett, M.B. (eds). (2003). The Conservation Status of Australian Chondrichthyans: Report of the IUCN Shark Specialist Group Australia and Oceania Regional Red List Workshop. The University of Queensland, School of Biomedical Sciences, Brisbane, Australia. X+ 170pp.

Collin, S.P. 2012. The Neuroecology of Cartilaginous Fishes: Sensory Strategies for Survival. Brain Behav Evol 80: 80-96.

Didier, D.A. 1995. Phylogenetic systematics of extant chimaeroid fishes (Holocephali, Chimaeroidei). American Museum Novitates 3119: 1-86.

Dolce, J.L. & C.D. Wilga. 2013. Evolutionary and Ecological Relationships of Gill Slit Morphology in Extant Sharks. Bulletin of the Museum of Comparative Zoology 161(3): 79-109

Dudgeon, C.L., Blower, D.C., Broderick, D., Giles, J.L., Holmes, B.J., Kashiwagi, T., Krück, N.C., Morgan, J.A.T., Tillett, B.J., Ovenden, J.R., 2012. A review of the application of molecular genetics for ﬁsheries management and conservation of sharks and rays. J. Fish Biol. 80: 1789–1843.

Dulvy, N.K., Fowler, S.L., Musick, J.A., Cavanagh, R.D., Kyne, P.M., Harrison, L.R., Carlson, J.K., Davidson, L.N., Fordham, S.V., Francis, M.P. et al. 2014. Extinction risk and conservation of the world’s sharks and rays. eLife. 2014; 3: e00590 DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.7554/eLife.00590 Open access

Hamlett, W. C. 1999. Sharks, Skates and Rays: The Biology of Elasmobranch Fishes. Baltimore, Maryland: Johns Hopkins Press.

Hart, N.S. & Collin, S.P. 2015. Sharks senses and shark repellents. Integrative Zoology 10: 38–64. doi: 10.1111/1749-4877.12095

Inoue, J. G., Miya, M., Lam, K., Tay, B. H., Danks, J. A., Bell, J., Walker, T. I. & Venkatesh, B. 2010. Evolutionary origin and phylogeny of the modern holocephalans (Chondrichthyes: Chimaeriformes): a mitogenomic perspective. Mol. Biol. Evol. 27: 2576–2586.

Last, P.R. & J.D. Stevens. 2009. Sharks and rays of Australia. 2nd Ed. CSIRO Publishing, Collingwood, Australia. 644 p.

Naylor, G.J.P., J.N. Caira, K. Jensen, K.A.M. Rosana, N. Straube & C. Lakner. 2012. Elasmobranch Phylogeny: A mitochondrial estimate based on 595 species. In J.C. Carrier, J.A. Musak & M.R. Heithaus (editors), The Biology of Sharks and Their Relatives. p. 31-56. CRC Press, Taylor &Francis Group.

Naylor, G.J.P., J.N. Caira, K. Jensen, K.A.M. Rosana, W.T. White & P.R. Last. 2012. A DNA Sequence Based Approach To The Identification of Shark and Ray Species And Its Implications For Global Elasmobranch Diversity And Parasitology. Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 367: 262 pp.

Naylor GJP, Ryburn JA, Fedrigo O, Lopez JA. 2005. Phylogenetic relationships among the major lineages of modern elasmobranchs. In: Hamlett WC, editor. Reproductive biology and phylogeny of Chondrichthyes: sharks, batoids and chimaeras. Volume 3. Enfield NH: Science Publishers, Inc. p. 1–25.

Rivera-Vicente AC, Sewell J, Tricas TC. 2011. Electrosensitive spatial vectors in elasmobranch fishes: implications for source localization. PLoS ONE 6(1): e16008.

Schluessel V, et al. 2008. Morphometric and ultrastructural comparison of the olfactory system in elasmobranchs: the significance of structure–function relationships based on phylogeny and ecology. J Morphol. 269: 1365–1386.

Stevens, J.D., Bonﬁl, R., Dulvy, N.K., Walker, P.A., 2000. The effects of ﬁshing on sharks, rays, and chimaeras (chondrichthyans), and the implications for marine ecosystems. ICES J. Mar. Sci. 57, 476–494.

Tricas TC. 2001. The neuroecology of the elasmobranch electrosensory world: why peripheral morphology shapes behavior. Environmental Biology of Fishes 60: 77-92

Vélez-Zuazo X, & Agnarsson I. 2011. Shark tales: A molecular species-level phylogeny of sharks (Selachimorpha, Chondrichthyes). Molecular Phylogenetics & Evolution 58(2): 207-217.

Venkatesh, B., Tay, A., Dandona, N., Patil, J.G. & Brenner, S. 2005. A compact cartilaginous fish model genome. Current Biology 15: R82-R83.

Ward, R.D., Holmes, B.H., White, W.T. & Last, P.R. 2008. DNA barcoding Australasian chondrichthyans: results and potential uses in conservation. Marine and Freshwater Research 59(1): 57-71.

Wilga, C.D. & G.V. Lauder. 2004. Locomotion in sharks, skates and rays, pp. 139–164. In J. C. Carrier, J. Musick, and M. Heithaus, (eds.), Biology of Sharks and their Relatives. Boca Raton, Florida: CRC Press.
Wueringer, B.E. 2012. Electroreception in Elasmobranchs: Sawfish as a Case Study. Brain Behav. Evol. 80: 97-107.

Worm, B., Davis, B., Kettemer, L., Ward-Paige, C.A., Chapman, D., Heithaus, M.R., Kessel, S.T. & Gruber, S.H. 2013. Global catches, exploitation rates, and rebuilding options for sharks. Marine Policy 40: 194–204.

White, W.T. & Kyne, P.M. 2010. The status of chondrichthyan conservation in the Indo-Australasian region. J. Fish Biol. 76: 2090–2117.

Fish Classification

Class

Order

Class CHONDRICHTHYES

References