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Flathead Catshark
Apristurus laurussonii
The Iceland or Icelandic catshark (Apristurus laurussonii) is a species of shark, belonging to the family Pentanchidae, the deepwater catsharks. This catshark is found in the western Atlantic, from Massachusetts, Delaware, and the northern Gulf of Mexico, as well as the eastern Atlantic from Iceland, southwestern Ireland, the Canary Islands, Madeira, South Africa, and between 67 and 11°N. They are found in depths of 550 to 1450 meters near or at the bottom over upper continental slopes.
From the article Iceland catshark on Wikipedia (CC BY-SA), quoted section by section
Description
It has a relatively slender body, tapering slightly toward the head. It has a broad and somewhat long, bell-shaped snout. It has short gill slits, and adults have small eyes. The first and second dorsal fins are almost the same size. It is dark brown with no prominent markings. It reaches a maximum size of around 67 cm. The average size ranges from 50 cm to 60 cm. Its diet consists of squid, bony fish, marine worms (such as the lugworm or clam worm), and crustaceans, including lobster, shrimp, and crabs.
In human culture
The catshark was named by Sæmundsson, in honor of his friend Gísli Lárusson (1865–1935), a goldsmith, a watchmaker, farmer and nature enthusiast, for his support of the study of Icelandic fishes.
Wikipedia: “Etymology”
Where it lives
Recorded sightings
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geo-referenced records in GBIF, from museums, herbaria and field observers.
Drag the globe to turn it. Dots are where records exist, not a range map; darker means more records.
In the stacks
Searching the stacks…
Every page naming Apristurus laurussonii 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 94451.