Species: Hexanchus griseus, Bluntnose sixgill shark
head wide, rounded
eye small
6 rows lower teeth
Hexanchus griseus (Bonnaterre, 1788)
Bluntnose sixgill shark
Large, heavy body; head and snout wide, rounded; eyes relatively small; mouth narrow, strongly arched; upper teeth small, with 1 large oblique point, narrow, hooked at front, progressively wider and more comb-like on sides; lower teeth comb-like (long, low, serrated, oblique cutting edge), large lower teeth in 6 rows; six large gill slits, none over pectoral base; 1 dorsal fin, at rear of body, close to tail fin (separated from tail fin base by a distance ~equal to the length of its base; tail very asymmetrical, lower lobe not strongly developed, weak notch under top tip.
Grey to black above, paler to white below, sometimes dark spots on sides; eyes green; lateral line pale; rear edges of fins pale.
Size: 482 cm.
Habitat: demersal and mid-water; rarely in rivers.
Dept: 0-2500 m, usually 500-1100 m.
Circumglobal, tropical to temperate; N Carolina to Argentina.
High Resolution Map Download
- Salinity
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- Marine
- Marine Only
- Inshore/Offshore
-
- In & Offshore
- Offshore
- Inshore
- Water Column Position
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- Bottom
- Near Bottom
- Bottom + water column
- Habitat
-
- Water column
- Soft bottom (mud/sand/gravel/beach/estuary/mangrove/seagrass)
- Reef and soft bottom
- Rocks
- Reef (rock/coral/oyster)
- Sand & gravel
- Reef associated (reef + edges-water column & soft bottom)
- FishBase Habitat
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- Reef Associated
- Bathydemersal
- Feeding Group
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- Carnivore
- Data
- Diet
-
- Data
- Sea snakes/mammals/turtles/birds
- Mobile benthic crustacea (shrimps/crabs)
- Octopus/squid/cuttlefish
- Sharks/rays
- Bony fishes
- Egg Type
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- No pelagic larva
- No pelagic phase
- Data
- Live birth
- Global Endemism
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- Greater Caribbean non-endemic
- All species.
- Circumtropical ( Indian + Pacific + Atlantic Oceans)
- Regional Endemism
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- Extends North of GC
- Continental primarily
- Continent + Island (s)
- Island (s)
- GC non-endemic
- All species..
- Continent
- Residency
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- Resident
- Climate Zone
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- Equatorial (0-10N, Costa Rica / Venezuela)
- Temperate (>35N)
- Subtropical (23-35N, Florida / Carolinas / Bermuda)
- Tropical (10-23N, Nicaragua / Cuba)
- IUCN Red List
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- Listed
- Near threatened
- CITES
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- Not listed
- Length Max
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- 482
- Depth Range Min
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- 0
- Depth Range Max
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- 2500
