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Velvet Dogfish
Zameus squamulosus
The velvet dogfish (Zameus squamulosus) the only member of the genus Zameus, is a harmless sleeper shark of the family Somniosidae, found around the world between latitudes 64°N and 48°S, from the surface to 2,000 m. Its length is up to 84 cm. Although sharks within the family Somniosidae have generally been accepted to be non-luminous, Zameus squamulosus has photophores on its ventral epidermis....
From the article Velvet dogfish on Wikipedia (CC BY-SA), quoted section by section
Description
Velvet dogfish range from 24.5 cm up to 84 cm. Although sharks within the family Somniosidae have generally been accepted to be non-luminous, Zameus squamulosus has photophores on its ventral epidermis allowing for them to be bioluminescent. They are mainly found as common bycatch to commercial fishes such as scabbardfish, tuna and swordfish. Despite being common bycatch, little is known of their biology to them inhabiting deeper waters which are difficult to access.
Range & habitat
Zameus squamulosus is found in latitudes between 64°N and 48°S within the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Ocean. One well documented area of Zameus squamulosus is within the cost of Hawaii during fishing as it is common bycatch to tuna and swordfish. However they are commonly described as bottom dwelling fishes off continental and insular slopes within depths up to 2000 meters deep. Due to it inhabiting deeper waters, it is not well known just how far Zameus squamulosus is distributed.
Wikipedia: “Distribution”
Where it lives
Recorded sightings
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geo-referenced records in GBIF, from museums, herbaria and field observers.
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In the stacks
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Every page naming Zameus squamulosus in the Biodiversity Heritage Library →
This page is assembled live from iNaturalist, GBIF, Wikipedia, the Source Library and the Internet Archive. It is not yet part of the hand-edited codex. iNaturalist taxon 115231.