Taxonomy and Phylogeny
German naturalists Marcus Elieser Bloch and Johann Gottlob Schneider originally described the blind shark as Squalus waddi, in their 1801 Systema Ichthyologiae. However, there is uncertainty over whether their account was referring to this species or the brownbanded bamboo shark (Chiloscyllium punctatum), as it was based on a painting by John Latham that could not be located by subsequent authors. In 1907, James Douglas Ogilby coined the genus Brachaelurus for this species, from the Greek brachys meaning "short", and ailouros meaning "cat". In 1973, Leonard Compagno placed it and the bluegrey carpetshark in their own family. This shark may also be referred to as the brown catshark or dusky dogfish.
Various phylogenetic studies, based on morphology, have concluded that the blind shark lineage represents the sister taxon to the wobbegongs. Blind shark fossils have been found in Late Cretaceous period (99.6–65.5 Ma) deposits from Europe, as well as in Pliocene epoch (5.3–2.6 Ma) deposits from Chile and Peru. A number of other Brachaelurus species are also known from the fossil record.
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