Scientific Name:    Carcharias taurus         
Nomenclater:    Rafinesque, 1810
Family:    F016  Odontaspididae
Holotype-Locality:    Mediterranean Sea
Habitats:    Coral、Coastal      
Economic Fish:     Yes
Habitats Depth:    0 - 191 M      
Aquarium Fish:     No
Poisonous Fish:    No      
Edible Fish:     Yes
Synonyms:    Carcharhinus taurus, Carcharias arenarius, Carcharias griseus, Carcharias owstoni, Carcharias platensis, Carcharias tricuspidatus, Charcharias taurus, Eugomphodus taurus, Lamna ecarinata, Odontaspis americanus, Odontaspis arenarius, Odontaspis cinerea, Odontaspis ferox, Odontaspis platensis, Odontaspis taurus, Squalus americanus, Squalus littoralis, Squalus lixa, Squalus macrodus  
Reference:    Compagno, L. J. V., 2001. FAO species catalogue. Sharks of the world. 2ed vol.2 Zhu, Y. D. and Q. W. Meng et al., 2001. Fauna Sinica. Chondrichthyes. 552 p. Shen, S. C. . (ed.), 1993. Fishes of Taiwan. 960 p. Last, P. R. and J. D. Stevens, 1994 Sharks and 
Redlist Status:    IUCN Redlist: Vulnerable(VU)  
Common Name in Engulish:    Sand tiger; Sand shark; Sandtiger shark; Sand tiger shark; Slender-tooth shark; Spotted sand tiger shark; Spotted ragged-tooth shark; Spotted raggedtooth shark; Spotted ragged-tooth; Dogfish shark; Gray nurse shark; Grey Nurse Shark; Grey nurse; Ground sh
Chinese Name transliteration:    ji chih sha jiao, jhuei chih sha, da sha
Distribution in Taiwan:    East、North East
Distribution in World:    global
Max Lenth:     320 cm
Specimen List:    
Characteristic:    A large, bulky shark. Head with 5 medium to large gill slits, all in front of pectoral-fin bases, no gill rakers; snout very short and flattened-conical; no nasal barbels or nasoral grooves; eyes small, without nictitating eyelids; mouth very long and angular, extending well behind eyes; anterior teeth in 3 rows on either side of symphysis, large, with long, narrow, hooked, sharp-edged but non-serrated cusps and usually 1 short cusplet on each side; upper anteriors separated from the smaller laterals by a single row of tiny intermediate teeth (lacking in lower jaw); lower anteriors separated at front by 2 rows of small symphyseal teeth (generally lacking in upper jaw). Two dorsal fins, the base of first just in front of pelvic-fin bases and well posterior to pectoral fins; second dorsal fin about as large as first dorsal and anal fins; caudal fin strongly asymmetrical, with a pronounced subterminal notch and a short ventral lobe. No keels on caudal peduncle, but with a strong upper precaudal pit. Claspers tapering. Intestinal valve of ring type. Colour: light brown, often with darker reddish or brownish spots scattered on body, eyes with light green irises.
Habitats:    Maximum total length about 3.18 m; adults between 2.2 to 3 m. Size at birth 95 to 105 cm. Males maturing at about 190 to 195 cm; females maturing at 220 cm or more. A common littoral shark found inshore from the surf zone and in shallow bays to at least 1
Distribution:    East and Northeast off Taiwan; wide-ranging in warm-temperate and tropical coastal waters of the Atlantic Ocean, Mediterranean Sea, and Indo-West Pacific Ocean; absent from the Central Pacific and eastern Pacific Oceans.
Utility:    It is caught by a large variety of fishing gear including line gear, bottom gill nets, and in pelagic and bottom trawls and is utilized for its flesh, liver oil, fins, and hides for leather. This shark is listed on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Animals 

Text and images are provided by The Fish Datebase of Taiwan (Biodiversity Research Center, Academia Sinica, Taiwan)