Whitetip reef shark (Triaenodon obesus)

Scientific name: Triaenodon obesus R?ppell, 1837

Whitetip reef shark (Triaenodon obesus)

The Whitetip reef shark (Triaenodon obesus) is a marine fish of the family Carcharhinidae.

Biology

Sluggish inhabitant of lagoons and seaward reefs where it is often found resting in caves or under coral ledges during the day, or usually on a sand patch, or in a channel. More active at night or during slack tide in areas of strong currents. Feeds on benthic animals such as fishes, octopi, spiny lobsters and crabs. Viviparous. Travels distances from about 0.3 to 3 km in periods up to about 1 year. Rarely reported to attack humans, but is potentially dangerous especially when fish had been speared. Probably fished wherever it occurs. Caught by inshore longline and gillnet fisheries, and probably adversely affected by dynamite fishing. Meat and liver utilized fresh for human consumption. The liver of this shark has been reported

Source: FishBase, licensed CC BY-NC 4.0.

Species facts

Scientific name
Triaenodon obesus
Family
Carcharhinidae (Requiem sharks)
Order
Carcharhiniformes (Ground sharks)
Class
Elasmobranchii (Sharks and Rays)
Maximum length
213
Common length
160
Depth range
1–330 m (3–1083 ft)
Environment
Marine; reef-associated; depth range 1 - 330 m, usually 8 - 40 m
Climate
Tropical
Distribution
Indo-Pacific: Red Sea and East Africa to Indonesia and the Arafura Sea, north to Ryukyu and Ogasawara islands, south to New South Wales, New Caledonia, and the Austral and Pitcairn islands; throughout Micronesia. Eastern Pacific: Cocos and Galapagos islands, Panama to Costa Rica.
Conservation status (IUCN)
Near Threatened (NT)
Threat to humans
Traumatogenic
Uses
Fisheries: minor commercial; gamefish: yes
Resilience
Very Low, minimum population doubling time more than 14 years (tm=5-9; tmax=25; Fec=1)

Sources

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

Last updated