| Family: |
Hexanchidae (Cow sharks) |
| Max. size: |
230 cm TL (male/unsexed); 178 cm TL (female) |
| Environment: |
bathydemersal; marine; depth range 0 - 700 m |
| Distribution: |
Atlantic Ocean: Gulf of Mexico, the Caribbean to Venezuela and Guyanas; Bay of Biscay, from France to Morocco and the Mediterranean. |
| Diagnosis: |
|
| Biology: |
Found on continental and insular slopes. Feeds mainly on bony fishes and cephalopods, sometimes on crustaceans Viviparous, with 13 to 26 young in a litter. Size at birth measures to about 40-45 cm TL (Ref. 125614). It was reported that there is likely some stratification of the distribution by size, presumably with larger individuals present in deeper waters (mostly adult captured in the Bahamas at an average depth of 639.5 m) than the juveniles (< 350 m in Belize and northern Gulf of Mexico). Resource and habitat partitioning between juvenile and much larger adult bluntnose sixgill sharks has been suggested as predation avoidance (Ref. 117400). |
| IUCN Red List Status: |
Least Concern (LC); Date assessed: 20 June 2019 Ref. (130435)
|
| Threat to humans: |
harmless |
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