Species: Etmopterus robinsi, West Indian Lantern Shark

lower black marks prominent
Etmopterus robinsi Schofield & Burgess, 1997
West Indian Lantern Shark
Body moderately stout; head and snout flat, long, broad, depth at front of eye 2/3 width; no nictitating eyelids; spiracle large, behind eye; mouth short, at acute angle; upper teeth with a large central point plus 2 smaller points on each side; lower teeth compressed and blade-like, with small, oblique tips; five gill slits, all before pectoral base, very short; two dorsal fins, second much higher but <2X area of 1st, both with long thick grooved spines, 2nd spine larger than 1st; first dorsal with origin just behind pressed-down pectoral tip, fin much nearer pectoral fin axil than origin of pelvics; pectoral fin triangular; no anal fin; no ridges between pectoral and pelvic fins, no precaudal pits, no keel on tail base; tail fin strongly asymmetrical, notch at top, relatively short (top margin length ~snout tip to pectoral origin); fins without rear fringes; denticles needle like, densely and randomly arranged, cover head and body; flank denticles with slender, hooked points, wide spaced, not in longitudinal rows.
Head and body grey to dark brown above, conspicuously dark below; elongate black mark above and behind pelvics subdivided.
Size: 34 cm.
Habitat: Upper continental slope
Depth: 412-787 m.
SE USA to the central Caribbean.

High Resolution Map Download
- Salinity
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- Marine
- Marine Only
- Inshore/Offshore
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- Offshore
- Offshore Only
- Water Column Position
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- Bottom
- Bottom + water column
- Near Bottom
- Habitat
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- Soft bottom (mud/sand/gravel/beach/estuary/mangrove/seagrass)
- Water column
- FishBase Habitat
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- Bathydemersal
- Feeding Group
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- Carnivore
- Data
- Diet
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- Data
- Bony fishes
- Mobile benthic crustacea (shrimps/crabs)
- Octopus/squid/cuttlefish
- Egg Type
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- Data
- Live birth
- No pelagic larva
- Global Endemism
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- All species
- Greater Caribbean endemic
- West Atlantic Endemic
- Regional Endemism
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- Continent
- Continent + Island (s)
- GC endemic
- Island (s)
- All species
- Residency
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- Resident
- Climate Zone
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- Subtropical (23-35N, Florida / Carolinas / Bermuda)
- Tropical (10-23N, Nicaragua / Cuba)
- IUCN Red List
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- Least concern
- Listed
- CITES
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- Not listed
- Length Max
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- 34
- Depth Range Min
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- 412
- Depth Range Max
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- 787