''Carcharias'' is a genus of sand tiger sharks belonging to the family Odontaspididae. Once bearing many prehistoric species, all have gone extinct with the exception of the critically endangered sand tiger shark.

Description

''Carcharias'' are 2.5 m long on average. The maximum weight of the shark is 158.8 kg. Differentiating species of sharks is usually done by locating and measuring their fins. The second dorsal fin and the anal fin of ''Carcharias'' are very large. In fact, they are about equal in size. The pectoral fins are triangular and only slightly larger than the dorsal fins. The teeth are very long and narrow with sharp points. The teeth are smooth with no ridges. The tail is one third of the entire body size.

Diet

''Carcharias'' species hunt bony fish, small sharks, rays, squids, crabs, and lobsters.

Habitat

Sand tiger sharks live in water depths ranging from 0 to 190 meters. They are found in the Pacific, Atlantic, and Indian oceans. They are commonly found in surf zones.

Species

With the Greek name 'Carcharias' literally translating to “shark”, many presently extant species have been placed into this genus before being moved to different genera and orders.

Extant species

* ''

Carcharias taurus The sand tiger shark (''Carcharias taurus''), gray nurse shark, spotted ragged-tooth shark or blue-nurse sand tiger, is a species of shark that inhabits subtropical and temperate waters worldwide. It inhabits the continental shelf, from sandy sho ...

'' Rafinesque, 1810 (sand tiger shark)

Species previously described in this genus

* ''

Carcharias acutidens The sicklefin lemon shark (''Negaprion acutidens'') or sharptooth lemon shark is a species of requiem shark belonging to the family Carcharhinidae, widely distributed in the tropical waters of the Indo-Pacific. It is closely related to the better ...

'' Rüppell, 1837 (accepted as ''

Negaprion acutidens The sicklefin lemon shark (''Negaprion acutidens'') or sharptooth lemon shark is a species of requiem shark belonging to the family Carcharhinidae, widely distributed in the tropical waters of the Indo-Pacific. It is closely related to the better ...

'') * ''

Carcharias borneensis The Borneo shark (''Carcharhinus borneensis'') is a species of requiem shark, and part of the family Carcharhinidae. Extremely rare, it is known only from inshore waters around Mukah in northwestern Borneo, though it may once have been more w ...

'' Seale, 1910 (accepted as ''

Carcharhinus sealei The blackspot shark (''Carcharhinus sealei'') is a small species of requiem shark in the family Carcharhinidae found in the tropical Indo-West Pacific Ocean between latitudes 24°N and 30°S, from the surface to a depth around . Its length is ...

'') * ''

Carcharias brachyrhynchos The pigeye shark or Java shark (''Carcharhinus amboinensis'') is an uncommon species of requiem shark, in the family Carcharhinidae, found in the warm coastal waters of the eastern Atlantic and western Indo-Pacific. It prefers shallow, murky env ...

'' Bleeker, 1859 (accepted as ''

Carcharhinus amboinensis The pigeye shark or Java shark (''Carcharhinus amboinensis'') is an uncommon species of requiem shark, in the family Carcharhinidae, found in the warm coastal waters of the eastern Atlantic and western Indo-Pacific. It prefers shallow, murky env ...

'') * '' Carcharias brevipinna'' Müller & Henle, 1839 (accepted as ''

Carcharhinus brevipinna The spinner shark (''Carcharhinus brevipinna'') is a species of requiem shark, in the family Carcharhinidae, named for the spinning leaps it makes as a part of its feeding strategy. This species occurs in tropical and warm temperate waters worldw ...

'') * ''

Carcharias falciformis The silky shark (''Carcharhinus falciformis''), also known by numerous names such as blackspot shark, gray whaler shark, olive shark, ridgeback shark, sickle shark, sickle-shaped shark and sickle silk shark, is a species of requiem shark, in the f ...

'' Müller & Henle, 1839 (accepted as '' Carcharhinus falciformis'') * ''

Carcharias fronto The lemon shark (''Negaprion brevirostris'') is a species of shark from the family Carcharhinidae and is classified as a Vulnerable species by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature. Lemon sharks can grow to in length. They are o ...

'' Jordan & Gilbert, 1882 (accepted as ''

Negaprion brevirostris The lemon shark (''Negaprion brevirostris'') is a species of shark from the family Carcharhinidae and is classified as a Vulnerable species by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature. Lemon sharks can grow to in length. They are o ...

'') * ''

Carcharias hemiodon The Pondicherry shark (''Carcharhinus hemiodon'') is an extremely rare species of requiem shark, in the family Carcharhinidae. A small and stocky gray shark, it grows not much longer than and has a fairly long, pointed snout. This species can be ...

'' Müller & Henle, 1839 (accepted as ''

Carcharhinus hemiodon The Pondicherry shark (''Carcharhinus hemiodon'') is an extremely rare species of requiem shark, in the family Carcharhinidae. A small and stocky gray shark, it grows not much longer than and has a fairly long, pointed snout. This species can be ...

'') * '' Carcharias sealei'' Pietschmann, 1913 (accepted as ''

'')

Extinct species

Extinct species within this genus lived from the Cretaceous period to the

Quaternary The Quaternary ( ) is the current and most recent of the three periods of the Cenozoic Era in the geologic time scale of the International Commission on Stratigraphy (ICS). It follows the Neogene Period and spans from 2.58 million years ...

period (from 99.7 to 0.012 Ma). Fossils have been found all over the world, especially in the Miocene and

Oligocene The Oligocene ( ) is a geologic epoch of the Paleogene Period and extends from about 33.9 million to 23 million years before the present ( to ). As with other older geologic periods, the rock beds that define the epoch are well identified but the ...

sediments of Europe, the United States and

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

, in the Eocene of Egypt, Europe and the United States, as well as in the Cretaceous of

, Canada, the United States, Europe and Africa. Species from the fossil record include: MenuhaCarchariasHolmdelensis

Cretaceous species

* '' Carcharias tenuiplicatus'' * '' Carcharias holmdelensis'' Maastrichtian * '' Carcharias samhammeri'' Late Cretaceous * ''

Carcharias heathi ''Carcharias'' is a genus of sand tiger sharks belonging to the family Odontaspididae. Once bearing many prehistoric species, all have gone extinct with the exception of the critically endangered sand tiger shark. Description ''Carcharias'' ar ...

'' Late Cretaceous

Paleogene species

*'' Carcharias acutissima'' (

Agassiz Jean Louis Rodolphe Agassiz ( ; ) FRS (For) FRSE (May 28, 1807 – December 14, 1873) was a Swiss-born American biologist and geologist who is recognized as a scholar of Earth's natural history. Spending his early life in Switzerland, he rec ...

, 1844) - Late Eocene *''

Carcharias atlasi ''Carcharias'' is a genus of sand tiger sharks belonging to the family Odontaspididae. Once bearing many prehistoric species, all have gone extinct with the exception of the critically endangered sand tiger shark. Description ''Carcharias'' ar ...

'' *''

Carcharias hopei ''Carcharias'' is a genus of sand tiger sharks belonging to the family Odontaspididae. Once bearing many prehistoric species, all have gone extinct with the exception of the critically endangered sand tiger shark. Description ''Carcharias'' ar ...

'' (

, 1843) - Late Palaeocene - Eocene *''

Carcharias koerti ''Carcharias'' is a genus of sand tiger sharks belonging to the family Odontaspididae. Once bearing many prehistoric species, all have gone extinct with the exception of the critically endangered sand tiger shark. Description ''Carcharias'' ar ...

'' (Stromer, 1905) *'' Carcharias robusta''? (Leriche, 1921) - Early Eocene *'' Carcharias teretidens'' - maybe placed into its own genus as ''Sylvestrilamia teretidens'' *'' Carcharias teretidens'' (White, 1931), - Late Palaeocene - Eocene *'' Carcharias tingitana'' (Arambourg, 1952) *'' Carcharias vincenti'' (Woodward, 1899) *''

Carcharias whitei ''Carcharias'' is a genus of sand tiger sharks belonging to the family Odontaspididae. Once bearing many prehistoric species, all have gone extinct with the exception of the critically endangered sand tiger shark. Description ''Carcharias'' ar ...

'' (Arambourg, 1952) - Paleocene

Neogene

*'' Carcharias acutissima'' (Agassiz, 1843), Oligocene - Pliocene *''

Carcharias reticulata ''Carcharias'' is a genus of sand tiger sharks belonging to the family Odontaspididae. Once bearing many prehistoric species, all have gone extinct with the exception of the critically endangered sand tiger shark. Description ''Carcharias'' ar ...

'' (Probst, 1879), Oligocene - Miocene *'' Carcharias cuspidata'' (Agassiz, 1843), Oligocene - Miocene *''

'' Rafinesque, 1810, Pliocene - Present *'' Carcharias cuspidata'' (Agassiz, 1843), Pliocene - Miocene *''Carcharias'' sp. - unidentified but maybe similar to the ''Carcharias contortidens'' as described by Agassiz in 1843, from the Miocene. *''

'' (Kent 1994) maybe classified as ''Odontaspis acutissma'' (Agassiz 1843) from the Miocene.

References

External links

* {{Taxonbar, from=Q578852 Odontaspididae Extant Cretaceous first appearances Shark genera Taxa named by Constantine Samuel Rafinesque Fish genera with one living species