Arrowhead dogfish

Arrowhead dogfish
Conservation status
Near Threatened  (IUCN 3.1)[1]
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Chondrichthyes
Subclass:	Elasmobranchii
Order:	Squaliformes
Family:	Centrophoridae
Genus:	Deania
Species:	D. profundorum
Binomial name
Deania profundorum (H. M. Smith & Radcliff, 1912)
Range of arrownose dogfish (in blue)
Synonyms
Deania elegans Springer, 1959

The arrowhead dogfish (Deania profundorum) is a small little known deepwater dogfish of the family Centrophoridae.

Physical characteristics

The arrowhead dogfish has an extremely long angular snout, no anal fin, small first dorsal and long rear dorsal spines, and pitchfork-shaped dermal denticles. The first dorsal fin is short and placed high on the back. This is the smallest of the genus Deania, with a maximum length of only 76 cm.

Distribution

It is found in the Pacific Ocean around the Philippines, in the Western Atlantic Ocean off of the Carolinas, in the Eastern Atlantic all along Africa's west coast, and in the Indian Ocean off South Africa.

Habits and habitat

This shark is a little-known deepwater species that lives at depths between 300 and 1,785 m. It is ovoviviparous with five to seven pups per litter. It eats bony fish, squid, and crustaceans.

References

1. Finucci, B.; Cheok, J.; Cotton, C.F.; Kulka, D.W.; Neat, F.C.; Rigby, C.L.; Tanaka, S.; Walker, T.I. (2020). "Deania profundorum". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2020: e.T161551A44016720. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2020-3.RLTS.T161551A44016720.en. Retrieved 18 November 2021.

• Froese, Rainer; Pauly, Daniel (eds.). "Deania profundorum". FishBase. September 2005 version.
• FAO Species Catalogue Volume 4 Parts 1 and 2 Sharks of the World