Poroderma pantherinum (Leopard catshark)

(Smith, in Müller & Henle, 1838)

Life > Eukaryotes > Opisthokonta > Metazoa (animals) > Bilateria > Deuterostomia > Chordata > Craniata > Vertebrata (vertebrates)  > Gnathostomata (jawed vertebrates) >.Chondrichthyes > Elasmobranchii > Galeomorphii > Carcharhiniformes > Scyliorhinidae

Poroderma pantherinum (Leopard catshark) [Illustration by Ann Hecht ©]

Identification

A stocky catshark with long nasal barbels and a highly variable colour pattern of black spots, rings, and lines in horizontal rows on a gray to whitish background, underside white. Illustrated are a typical `pantherinum' form with lines and rosettes of spots and two extremes, a `marleyi' form with large dark spots (formerly considered a separate species), and a `salt and pepper' form with small, densely packed black spots. Intermediates between these extremes are common, and some individuals have the rosettes partly fused to form irregular longitudinal stripes.

Size

To 74 cm TL.

Range

Southwest and east coast from False Bay to central Natal. Endemic.

Habitat

Essentially confined to the shelf in warm-temperate waters, from the intertidal to 256 m depth. Favors rocky reefs.

Biology

Very common off the eastern Cape. Lays one egg per oviduct. Feeds on small bony fish, crustaceans, octopi, and polychaete worms.

Human Impact

Frequently caught by shore anglers, but often released..

Text by Leonard J.V. Compagno, David A. Ebert and Malcolm J. Smale