The dumb gulper shark (''Centrophorus harrissoni'') is a rare and endangered deepwater dogfish, known from only along the east coast of Australia and isolated spots north and west of New Zealand. It is also known as the dumb shark, Harrison's deep-sea dogfish, or Harrison's dogfish.

Characteristics

The dumb gulper shark may grow to be long and has a long, robust head, a long, flattened snout, a large y mouth, and large, green eyes, which help it see at 820 to 1260 ft (250 to 385 m) under water.White, W.T., Ebert, D.A. and Compagno, L.J.V. (2008) Description of two new species of gulper sharks, genusCentrophorus (Chondrichthyes: Squaliformes: Centrophoridae) from Australia. In: Last, P.R., White, W.T. and Pogonoski, J.J. (Eds.) Descriptions of New Australian Chondrichthyans. CSIRO Marine and Atmospheric Research Paper No. 022, CSIRO, Australia. The body is slender and of moderate size, and is grey to greyish-brown in colour, with a paler underside. Of the two dorsal fins, the first is larger than the second, and each has a short spine, a white rear margin, and a dark blotch towards the front, which is more distinct in juveniles. The large caudal fin is asymmetrical, with a longer upper than lower lobe. The broad teeth of this species differ between the upper and lower jaws, with the lower teeth being much larger. The teeth also differ between the male and female, with the male having much more erect, upright upper teeth, and upward-curving tips on the lowers. The dumb gulper shark is very similar in appearance to the closely related little gulper shark.

Habitat

This shark is found off the coasts of eastern Australia and New Zealand. Its habitat is in the

demersal zone The demersal zone is the part of the sea or ocean (or deep lake) consisting of the part of the water column near to (and significantly affected by) the seabed and the benthos. The demersal zone is just above the benthic zone and forms a layer of ...

on the upper to middle

continental slope A continental margin is the outer edge of continental crust abutting oceanic crust under coastal waters. It is one of the three major zones of the ocean floor, the other two being deep-ocean basins and mid-ocean ridges. The continental margin ...

Behaviour

These sharks eat mostly

teleost Teleostei (; Greek ''teleios'' "complete" + ''osteon'' "bone"), members of which are known as teleosts ), is, by far, the largest infraclass in the class Actinopterygii, the ray-finned fishes, containing 96% of all extant species of fish. Tel ...

fishes (particularly

myctophids Lanternfishes (or myctophids, from the Greek μυκτήρ ''myktḗr'', "nose" and ''ophis'', "serpent") are small mesopelagic fish of the large family Myctophidae. One of two families in the order Myctophiformes, the Myctophidae are represente ...

cephalopods A cephalopod is any member of the molluscan class Cephalopoda (Greek plural , ; "head-feet") such as a squid, octopus, cuttlefish, or nautilus. These exclusively marine animals are characterized by bilateral body symmetry, a prominent head, an ...

and

crustaceans Crustaceans (Crustacea, ) form a large, diverse arthropod taxon which includes such animals as decapods, seed shrimp, branchiopods, fish lice, krill, remipedes, isopods, barnacles, copepods, amphipods and mantis shrimp. The crustacean group ...

.Daley, R., Stevens, J. and Graham, K. 2002. Catch analysis and productivity of the deepwater dogfish resource in southern Australia. Report by CSIRO Marine Research and NSW Fisheries to the Fisheries Research and Development Corporation. FRDC Project 1998/108. Females produce a maximum of one to two pups every one to two years. Evidence suggests that the left-side uterus is less functional than the right-side. They can live up to 46 years on average.

Population

The population size is unknown, but numbers have decreased as much as 99% in some areas since the 1970s. This species is harvested, by

trawling Trawling is a method of fishing that involves pulling a fishing net through the water behind one or more boats. The net used for trawling is called a trawl. This principle requires netting bags which are towed through water to catch different speci ...

drop lining Drop, DROP, drops or DROPS may refer to: * Drop (liquid) or droplet, a small volume of liquid ** Eye drops, saline (sometimes mydriatic) drops used as medication for the eyes * Drop (unit), a unit of measure of volume * Falling (physics), allowi ...

, for

meat Meat is animal flesh that is eaten as food. Humans have hunted, farmed, and scavenged animals for meat since prehistoric times. The establishment of settlements in the Neolithic Revolution allowed the domestication of animals such as chic ...

and liver oil (

squalene Squalene is an organic compound. It is a triterpenoid with the formula C30H50. It is a colourless oil, although impure samples appear yellow. It was originally obtained from shark liver oil (hence its name, as ''Squalus'' is a genus of sharks). A ...

). Upper-slope dogfish species are more vulnerable to capture than midslope species, because they are targeted throughout their vertical distribution and most of their local geographic distribution.Andrew, N.L., Graham, K.J., Hodgson, K.E. and Gordon, G.N.G. 1997. Changes after twenty years in relative abundance and size composition of commercial fishes caught during fishery independent surveys on SEF trawl grounds. NSW Fisheries Final Report Series No. 1 FRDC Project No. 96/139. The low reproductive rate, late age of maturity, and long lifespan typical of these sharks means they are likely unable to recover quickly after depletion.

Conservation

Action is being taken to preserve the dumb gulper, which includes being incorporated into the Environmental Protection and Biodiversity Conservation (EPBC) Act to create a plan to keep this species safe. In response to this species’ inherent low productivity and continuing reduced numbers, managers have introduced landing restrictions and area closures to enhance ''C. harrissoni'' stocks in southern Australian waters. The New Zealand

Department of Conservation An environmental ministry is a national or subnational government agency politically responsible for the environment and/or natural resources. Various other names are commonly used to identify such agencies, such as Ministry of the Environment ...

has classified the dumb gulper shark as "Data Deficient" with the qualifier "Threatened Overseas" under the

New Zealand Threat Classification System The New Zealand Threat Classification System is used by the Department of Conservation to assess conservation priorities of species in New Zealand. The system was developed because the IUCN Red List, a similar conservation status system, had some ...

References

External links

ARKIVE
Dumb gulper shark - Videos, photos and facts {{Taxonbar, from=Q994856

dumb gulper shark The dumb gulper shark (''Centrophorus harrissoni'') is a rare and endangered deepwater dogfish, known from only along the east coast of Australia and isolated spots north and west of New Zealand. It is also known as the dumb shark, Harrison's d ...

Fish of New Caledonia Fauna of New South Wales Tasman Sea