Cookie cutter shark (Isistius brasiliensis)

Scientific name: Isistius brasiliensis Quoy & Gaimard, 1824

The Cookie cutter shark (Isistius brasiliensis) is a marine fish of the family Dalatiidae.

Biology

Oceanic species. Epi- to bathypelagic at 1-3500 m. Makes diurnal vertical migrations from below 1,000 m in the day to or near the surface at night. Travels long vertical distances in excess of 2,000 to 3,000 m on a diel cycle. Feeds free-living deepwater prey such as large squid, gonostomatids, crustaceans but is also a facultative ectoparasite on larger pelagic animals such as wahoo, tuna, billfishes, and cetaceans. Ovoviviparous, with 6-12 young per litter. The cookiecutter shark has specialized suctorial lips and a strongly modified pharynx that allow it to attach to the sides of it prey. It then drives its saw-like lower dentition into the skin and flesh of its victim, twists about to cut out a conical plug of flesh, then pull free with the plug cradled

Source: FishBase, licensed CC BY-NC 4.0.

Species facts

Scientific name: Isistius brasiliensis
Family: Dalatiidae (Sleeper sharks)
Order: Squaliformes (Bramble, Sleeper and Dogfish sharks)
Class: Elasmobranchii (Sharks and Rays)
Maximum length: 42.0
Depth range: 1–3700 m (3–12139 ft)
Environment: Marine; bathypelagic; oceanodromous; depth range 1 - 3700 m
Climate: Deep-water
Distribution: Western Atlantic: Bahamas and southern Brazil. Eastern Atlantic: Cape Verde, Guinea to Sierra Leone, southern Angola and South Africa, including Ascension Island. Indo-Pacific: Mauritius to New Guinea, Lord Howe Island, and New Zealand, north to Japan and east to the Hawaiian Islands. Eastern Pacific: Easter Island and the Galapagos.
Conservation status (IUCN): Least Concern (LC)
Threat to humans: Harmless
Uses: Fisheries: minor commercial
Resilience: Very Low, minimum population doubling time more than 14 years (Fec = 6)

Sources

Taxonomy, distribution and biology data: FishBase (Froese, R. and D. Pauly, eds.), licensed CC BY-NC 4.0.

Last updated 27 September 2026