Gulper Shark, Centrophorus granulosus (Bloch & Schneider 1801)
Gulper Shark, Centrophorus granulosus. Source: Australian National Fish Collection, CSIRO. License: CC by Attribution-NonCommercial
Summary:
A brownish-grey gulper shark becoming pale grey below, often with a dark mouth lining.
Cite this page as:
Bray, D.J. 2023, Centrophorus granulosus in Fishes of Australia, accessed 19 Apr 2024, https://fishesofaustralia.net.au/home/species/2005
Gulper Shark, Centrophorus granulosus (Bloch & Schneider 1801)
More Info
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Distribution |
West of Dirk Hartog Island to the Exmouth Plateau, NW of the Montebello Islands, Western Australia, and from east of Innisfail, Queensland, to off Wooli, New South Wales. Elsewhere the species is widespread in the Atlantic and Indo-west Pacific oceans, with a patchy distribution. The species is demersal and benthopelagic on continental and insular shelves and slopes at depths of 98–1,500, mostly at 300–1100 m. |
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Features |
Snout moderately long, thick; preoral length 0.9–1.2 in mouth width; teeth blade-like unicuspidate in both jaws, lower teeth much larger than upper teeth. Lateral trunk denticles of adults rhomboidal to nearly circular sessile crowns on very low thick pedicels; crowns close-spaced but not overlapping, with a short thorn-like to blunt or obsolete medial cusp. First dorsal fin higher that second dorsal fin; origin of second dorsal fin above inner margin of pelvic fin; rear tips of pectoral fins narrowly angular and strongly extended. |
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Biology |
Reproduction is aplacental viviparous with litter sizes of 1–7 pups, mostly 4–6 pups. Gulper sharks have slow life histories, with males maturing at ~111 cm TL, and females at ~143 cm TL. The species is suspected to have undergone large population reduction and ongoing declines across the Indo-Pacific and West Africa. |
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Fisheries |
The species is targeted and taken as incidental bycatch across its range in midwater and demersal trawl, surface and demersal longline, and set-net fisheries. It is retained for its liver oil, which is considered to be the most valuable of shark liver oil and is an important marine resource for local communities. |
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Etymology |
The specific name granulosus is from the Latin granulum (= small grain, seed), in reference to the granular skin. |
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Species Citation |
Squalus granulosus Bloch & Schneider 1801, Systema Ichthyologiae: 135. Type locality: Off Puerto Santa Crus de Tenerife, Canary Islands, 28°19.0 - 21.55'N, 16°19.4 - 13.45'W, depth 731 meters over 1075 m (Neotype). |
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Author |
Bray, D.J. 2023 |
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Resources |
Gulper Shark, Centrophorus granulosus (Bloch & Schneider 1801)
References
Bloch, M.E. & Schneider, J.G. 1801. Systema Ichthyologiae Iconibus ex Illustratum. Berlin 584 pp. 110 pls. See ref at BHL
Compagno, L.J.V., Dando, M. & Fowler, S. 2005. A Field Guide to the Sharks of the World. London : Collins 368 pp. (as Centrophorus granulosus and C. acus)
Compagno, L.J.V. & Niem, V.H. 1998. Hexanchidae, Echinorhinidae, Squalidae. pp. 1208-1232 in Carpenter, K.E. & Niem, V.H. (eds). The Living Marine Resources of the Western Central Pacific. FAO Species Identification Guide for Fisheries Purposes. Rome : FAO Vol. 2 687-1396 pp. (as Centrophorus granulosus and C. niaukang)
Cotton, C.F., Grubbs, R.D., Dyb, J.E., Fossen, I. & Musick, J.A. 2015. Reproduction and embryonic development in two species of squaliform sharks, Centrophorus granulosus and Etmopterus princeps: evidence of matrotrophy? Deep Sea Research II 115: 41–54. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dsr2.2014.10.009
Dulvy, N.K. & Reynolds, J.D. 1997. Evolutionary transitions among egg-laying, live-bearing and maternal inputs in sharks and rays. Proceedings of the Royal Society of London, Ser. B 264: 1309-1315. https://doi.org/10.1098/rspb.1997.0181
(as Centrophorus granulosus, C. niaukang and C. acus)
Finucci, B., Bineesh, K.K., Cheok, J., Cotton, C.F., Dharmadi, Kulka, D.W., Neat, F.C., Pacoureau, N., Rigby, C.L., Tanaka, S. & Walker, T.I. 2020. Centrophorus granulosus. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2020: e.T162293947A2897883. https://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2020-3.RLTS.T162293947A2897883.en. Accessed on 03 July 2023.
Garman, S. 1906. New Plagiostomia. Bulletin of the Museum of Comparative Zoology, Harvard 46(11): 201-208 (described as Centrophorus acus, type locality Yokohama market, Japan)
Last, P.R. & Stevens, J.D. 2009. Sharks and Rays of Australia. Collingwood : CSIRO Publishing Australia 2, 550 pp. (as Centrophorus niaukang and C. acus)
Moyer, J.K. & Bemis, W.E. 2016. Tooth Microstructure and Replacement in the Gulper Shark, Centrophorus granulosus (Squaliformes: Centrophoridae). Copeia 104(2): 529- 538. https://doi.org/10.1643/CI-15-288
Müller, J. & Henle, F.G.J. 1837. Gattungen der Haifische und Rochen, nach ihrer Arbeit: "Ueber die Naturgeschichte der Knorpelfische". Bericht der Königlisch Preussischen Akademie der Wissenschaften zu Berlin 1836: 111-118
Teng, H.-T. 1959. Studies on the elasmobranch fishes from Formosa. Pt. 6. A new species of deep-sea shark (Centrophorus niaukang) from Formosa. Reports of the Laboratory of Fishery Biology of the Taiwan Fisheries Research Institute, Keelung 9: 1-6 (described as Centrophorus niaukang, type locality Northeastern coast of Taiwan)
White, W.T., Ebert, D.A., Naylor, G.J.P., Ho, H-C., et al. 2013. Revision of the genus Centrophorus (Squaliformes: Centrophoridae): Part 1--Redescription of Centrophorus granulosus (Bloch & Schneider), a senior synonym of C. acus Garman and C. niaukang Teng. Zootaxa 3752(1): 35-72. https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.3752.1.5
White, W.T., Ebert, D.A. & Compagno, L.J.V. 2008. Description of two new species of gulper sharks, genus Centrophorus (Chondrichthyes: Squaliformes: Centrophoridae) from Australia. pp. 1-21 in Last, P.R., White, W.T. & Pogonoski, J.J. (eds). Descriptions of new Australian chondrichthyans. CSIRO Marine and Atmospheric Research Paper No. 022: 1-358 http://hdl.handle.net/102.100.100/118353?index=1
