The cloudy catshark (Scyliorhinus torazame) is a common species of catshark, family Scyliorhinidae. It is a bottom-dweller that inhabits rocky reefs in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, from the shore to a depth of 320 m (1,050 ft). Growing up to 50 cm (20 in) long, this small, slim shark has a narrow head with a short blunt snout, no grooves between the nostrils and mouth, and furrows on the lower but not the upper jaw. It is also characterized by extremely rough skin and coloration consisting of a series of dark brown saddles along its back and tail, along with various darker and lighter spots in larger individuals.
The diet of the cloudy catshark consists of molluscs, crustaceans, and bony fishes. It is oviparous, with females laying encapsulated eggs two at a time in nursery areas. The claspers of the male bear numerous hooks that likely serve to facilitate copulation. This harmless shark can be readily maintained in captivity and is used as a model organism for biological research. It is caught incidentally, and generally discarded, by commercial fisheries. These activities do not appear to have negatively affected its population, leading it to be listed under Least Concern by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).
Read more about Cloudy Catshark: Taxonomy, Distribution and Habitat, Description, Biology and Ecology, Human Interactions
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“The natural historian is not a fisherman who prays for cloudy days and good luck merely; but as fishing has been styled “a contemplative man’s recreation,” introducing him profitably to woods and water, so the fruit of the naturalist’s observations is not in new genera or species, but in new contemplations still, and science is only a more contemplative man’s recreation.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)