Chlamydoselachus africana
Resembling a serpent with its elongated frame and wide, level head, the Southern African Frilled Shark is a rare sight for deep-sea explorers. This species is marked by six pairs of lengthy gill slits and a mouth filled with roughly thirty rows of hooked, needle-like teeth. While it looks much like its better-known relative, this shark is smaller upon reaching maturity and possesses a longer head and broader mouth. Its dark gray body is typically veiled by a fine membrane, giving the animal a consistent dark brown appearance.
This elusive predator inhabits the profound depths between southern Angola and Namibia. Sightings have occurred at depths ranging from 300 to 1,400 meters, including areas with low oxygen levels and soft seafloors. It appears to be a specialist that hunts other, smaller sharks. One individual was found to have consumed a ghost catshark nearly half its own length. Its flexible jaws and expandable stomach allow it to swallow such large prey whole, while the recurved shape of its teeth ensures that no meal escapes.
Very little is known about how these sharks live or the specific dangers they face in the deep. Researchers believe they give birth to live young without a placental connection, similar to other members of their family. Males are considered sexually mature once they reach a length of 91.5 cm. Because they live in such remote, deep-water environments, their population trends and the impacts of human activity on their habitat remain difficult to monitor.
Written from the English Wikipedia article Southern African frilled shark (CC BY-SA 4.0).
These are open occurrence records, so they show where people looked for and recorded the Southern African Frilled Shark as much as where it lives. Cells are up to 25 km across, and every location is generalised to its cell.
Where and when you can expect to see Southern African Frilled Shark is calculated from observation density. No zones have been computed for this species yet.
Conservation status not assessed here yet, so every location is generalised to its grid cell.