Milk shark (Rhizoprionodon acutus)

Scientific name: Rhizoprionodon acutus R?ppell, 1837

Milk shark (Rhizoprionodon acutus)

The Milk shark (Rhizoprionodon acutus) is a freshwater fish of the family Carcharhinidae.

Biology

Found on continental shelves, often on sandy beaches and rarely in estuaries. Reported to enter freshwater and recorded several times from Cambodia as far upstream as the Great Lake. Occurs near the surface in shallow waters. Feeds mainly on small pelagic and benthic bony fishes, also cephalopods and other invertebrates. Viviparous. Utilized fresh and possibly dried salted for human consumption and for fishmeal. The 178 cm specimen recorded off Africa is possibly based on some other species.

Source: FishBase, licensed CC BY-NC 4.0.

Species facts

Scientific name
Rhizoprionodon acutus
Family
Carcharhinidae (Requiem sharks)
Order
Carcharhiniformes (Ground sharks)
Class
Elasmobranchii (Sharks and Rays)
Maximum length
175
Common length
110
Depth range
1–200 m (3–656 ft)
Environment
Marine; freshwater; brackish; benthopelagic; amphidromous; depth range 1 - 200 m
Climate
Tropical
Distribution
Eastern Atlantic: Madeira and Mauritania to Angola; reported from the Gulf of Taranto. Indo-West Pacific: Red Sea and East Africa to Indonesia, north to Japan, south to Australia.
Conservation status (IUCN)
Least Concern (LC)
Threat to humans
Harmless
Uses
Fisheries: commercial; gamefish: yes
Resilience
Very Low, minimum population doubling time more than 14 years (Fec=1)

Sources

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

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