Family : Hexanchidae (Cow sharks)
Order : Hexanchiformes  (frill and cow sharks)
Class : Elasmobranchii (sharks and rays)
Fishbase Name : Sharpnose sevengill shark
Fish Name : Heptranchias perlo
Max size : 137 cm TL (male/unsexed; Ref. 247); 140 cm TL (female)
Environment : bathydemersal ; depth range 0 - 1000 m
Climate : deep-water; 49°N - 46°S
Global Importance : fisheries: minor commercial
Resilience: Very low, minimum population doubling time more than 14 years (Fec=9)Distribution : Circumglobal in tropical and temperate seas, excluding the northeast Pacific (Ref. 13573). Western Atlantic: North Carolina, USA and northern Gulf of Mexico to Cuba, then from Venezuela to Argentina (Ref. 6871). Eastern Atlantic: Morocco to Namibia, including the Mediterranean Sea. Indian Ocean: southwestern India, Aldabra Island, southern Mozambique, and South Africa. Western Pacific: Japan to China, Indonesia, Australia and New Zealand. Southeast Pacific: off northern Chile.
Diagnosis : Dorsal spines (total): 0-0; Anal spines: 0-0; Vertebrae: 125-161. A narrow-headed, big-eyed small seven-gilled shark (Ref. 247). Body fusiform and slender; dorsal fin small, originating over inner margins of pelvic fins; anal fin small (Ref. 6871). Teeth wide, low and comb-shaped (Ref. 6871). Brownish grey above, paler below, sometimes with indistinct dark blotches on body; juveniles with dark-tipped dorsal and caudal fins, adults with light fin margins (Ref. 5578, 6574, 6871). Live specimens with fluorescent green eyes (Ref. 6871).
Biology : Found on the outer continental and insular shelves and upper slopes in depths of 100 to 400 (Ref. 13573, 11230), also inshore and down to 1,000 m (Ref. 6871, 11230). Feeds on small sharks and rays, small bony fish, shrimps, crabs, lobsters, squid, and cuttlefish (Ref. 5578). Ovoviviparous (Ref. 205), with 9-12 young born per litter (Ref. 247). Very active and aggressive when captured and quick to bite but too small to be very dangerous to people (Ref. 247). Liver utilized as a source of oil. Maximum length may reach 214 cm, but this is uncertain
Threatened : Dangerous:  
Dangerous : poisonous to eat , Halstead, B.W., P.S. Auerbach and D.R. Campbell. 1990
Coordinator : Compagno, Leonard J.V.
Main Ref : Compagno, L.J.V.. 1984. (Ref. 247)

India country information
Common Names : [ No common name ]
Status : native
Salinity : marine
Uses : no uses