Starspotted Smoothhound Shark: Mustelus manazo

Family: Triakidae
Common names

Starspotted Smoothhound Shark.

Binomial

Mustelus manazo.

Synonyms

Galeorhinus manazo, Mustelus monazo.

Identification

Body slender. Snout fairly long and pointed. Upper and lower labial furrows similar in length. Small, visible spiracle behind eye. First dorsal fin origin midway between pectoral fin insertion and free rear tip. Second dorsal fin much larger than anal fin. Dorsal fin posterior margins un-frayed. Lower caudal lobe indistinct. Dorsal coloration greyish-brown with bronzy hues. Dorsal surface above lateral line lightly sprinkled with small white spots. A row of tightly spaced small white spots run along the lateral line from level with the first gill opening almost to the tip of the tail. A very short row of small white spots runs posteriorly from the eye, through the spiracle, diagonally downward to the cheek.  Fins unmarked.

Size

Maximum length 135cm. Size at birth approximately 30cm.

Starspotted Smoothhound Shark, Mustelus manazo. A shark in the family triakidae. Found in the Northwest Pacific from Siberia, China, Korea, Japan and Vietnam.

Conservation Status

ENDANGERERED

Mustelus manazo is a retained bycatch component of demersal trawl, longline, set net, and gillnet fisheries. Throughout this species’ range, fishing pressure is extremely heavy. Consequently, the starspotted smoothhound is suspected to have undergone a population reduction of 50–79% over the past three decades.

Starspotted Smoothhound Shark, Mustelus manazo. A shark in the family triakidae. Found in the Northwest Pacific from Siberia, China, Korea, Japan and Vietnam.
Habitat

A temperate/tropical species inhabiting muddy or sandy substrates on the continental shelf from 1-360m.

Distribution

The starspotted smoothhound shark is found in the northwestern Pacific from China, Japan; Korea, Russia, Taiwan, and Viet Nam. It has also been reported from Kenya but any records from East Africa are almost certainly a different species; probably the whitespot smoothhound (Mustelus palumbes).

Reproduction

A viviparous species with yolk-sac placenta. 1-22 pups per litter. Gestation is approximately 10-12 months. Reproductive parameters appear to vary geographically, with northern populations growing to a larger size and living for a longer period (Yamaguchi et al. 1998, 2000).

Diet

Predates heavily on crustaceans.

Behavior

Unknown.

Reaction to divers

Very shy due to its small size. Unlikely to approach unless baited.

Diving logistics

Rarely seen by divers in most of its range. It may be possible to encounter starspotted smoothhound sharks off the south coast of Honshu where they are often caught by fishermen in the vicinity of Chiba and probably elsewhere along the coast.

Similar species

Other Smoothhound Sharks Assuming that sightings from Kenya are misidentifications, the starspotted smoothhound is the only white-spotted smoothhound shark within it’s range.