Etmopterus baxteri / granulosus (Giant lanternshark)

Garrick, 1957

Life > Eukaryotes > Opisthokonta > Metazoa (animals) > Bilateria > Deuterostomia > Chordata > Craniata > Vertebrata (vertebrates)  > Gnathostomata (jawed vertebrates) > Chondrichthyes > Elasmobranchii > Squalomorphii > Squaliformes > Etmopteridae

Etmopterus baxteri (Giant lanternshark) [Illustration by Ann Hecht ©]

Identification

A large, heavy-bodied lanternshark with a big head and conspicuous lines of large, rough, conical denticles on the body but absent from the head. Colour black with a short, broad black mark above and slightly behind the pelvic inner margins; other elongated black marks at the caudal fin base.

Size

Up to 60cm TL or more

Range

West Coast from Cape Columbine to Cape Point; elsewhere, off southern South America

Habitat

Upper slope at depths of 668-923 m.

Biology

Abundant, apparently in large schools. Eats bony fish, squid, shrimp and crabs. Litter size unknown.

Human impact

None

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