Distribution
provided by World Register of Marine Species
Distribution: South Africa to Japan and Australia and New Zealand; Eastern Pacific from California to Galapagos Islands and Peru. Two dorsal fins, each with a spine. Only sharks with dorsal spines and anal fin present. Five pairs of gill slits; eyes without nictitating fold; small spiracles present; nostrils connected with mouth by deep groove. Small species (max 165 cm) with small mouth; anterior teeth small and cuspidate, posterior enlarged and molariform; snout very short and bluntly rounded. Sluggish nocturnal bottom sharks, mainly in shallow waters. Benthos feeder. Oviparous, producing eggs in unique, large, spiral-flanged egg cases. heter- (gr.) = different, odont- (gr.) = tooth
MASDEA (1997).
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Habitat
provided by World Register of Marine Species
These are warm-temperate and tropical bottom sharks of water above 21°C, mostly confined to the continental and insular shelves and uppermost slopes. They occur from the intertidal to 275 m depth, but most are found in water shallower than 100 m.
Compagno, L.J.V. (2001). Sharks of the world. An annotated and illustrated catalogue of shark species known to date. Volume 2. Bullhead, mackerel and carpet sharks (Heterodontiformes, Lamniformes and Orectolobiformes). FAO Species Catalogue for Fishery Purposes. No. 1, Vol. 2. Rome, FAO. 269p.
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