Blackmouth Catshark - Distribution and Habitat

Distribution and Habitat

The blackmouth catshark is widely distributed in the northeastern Atlantic Ocean, from southwestern Iceland and Trondheim, Norway southward to Senegal, including the Faroe Islands, the British Isles, the Azores, and the northern portion of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. It occurs throughout the Mediterranean Sea, save for the northern waters of the Adriatic and Aegean Seas, and is absent from the Black Sea. This species primarily inhabits the continental slope, at depths of 150–1,400 m (490–4,600 ft). However, it has been documented from water as shallow as 50–60 m (160–200 ft) off southern France, and as deep as 2,300–3,850 m (7,500–12,630 ft) in the eastern Mediterranean. The depths at which it is most common vary between regions, for example 300–500 m (980–1,600 ft) in the Bay of Biscay, 400–800 m (1,300–2,600 ft) off Portugal, 500–800 m (1,600–2,600 ft) in the Strait of Sicily, 1,000–1,400 m (3,300–4,600 ft) in the Catalan Sea, and 1,500–1,830 m (4,900–6,000 ft) in the eastern Mediterranean. Water temperature does not appear to be an important factor in determining the distribution of this species.

Found on or near the bottom, the blackmouth catshark favors a muddy habitat. There is little evidence for segregation by sex. A number of studies in the northern and western Mediterranean have reported that adults occur deeper than juveniles. Other studies though have found no such pattern. It is possible that areas such as the waters off southern France offer a habitat suitable for sharks of all ages. Another explanation with some scientific support is that adults are most common at intermediate depths, while young sharks are restricted to shallower water and both adults and juveniles are found in deeper water. If true, the age-depth inconsistencies observed from previous research could have resulted from incomplete depth sampling.