Alopias pelagicus Nakamura, 1935

Pelagic thresher

Catalog of Fishes (gen., sp.) | ITIS | CoL

Classification	Elasmobranchii \| Lamniformes \| Alopiidae
Synonyms	... more
Common names	Renard pélagique, Zorro pelágico, Fox shark, ... more

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Image of Alopias pelagicus (Pelagic thresher)

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AquaMaps Data sources: GBIF OBIS

Main reference

Compagno, L.J.V. 1984. (Ref. 247)
Other references | Biblio | Coordinator : Compagno, Leonard J.V. | Collaborators

Size / Weight / Age

Max length : 347 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 48844); 383 cm TL (female); common length : 276 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. ); max. reported age: 29 years (Ref. 48844)

Environment

Pelagic-oceanic; oceanodromous (Ref. 51243); marine; depth range 0 - 300 m (Ref. 37816), usually 0 - 150 m (Ref. 55167)

Climate / Range

Tropical; 40°N - 32°S, 34°E - 83°W (Ref. 54277)

Circumglobal. Indo-Pacific: Red Sea, Arabian Sea, Maldives (Ref. 30829), Somalia, South Africa, Western Australia, China, Taiwan, Japan, New Caledonia, Hawaiian Islands and Tahiti. Eastern Pacific: Gulf of California and the Galapagos. Reliable records lacking partly due to its confusion with Alopias vulpinus.
Countries | FAO areas | Ecosystems | Occurrences | Introductions

Short description

Dorsal spines (total): 0; Anal spines: 0. A small thresher with moderately large eyes, a broadly convex forehead, a very narrow caudal tip, and straight, broad-tipped pectoral fins (Ref. 5578). Upper lobe of caudal fin very long and strap-like, almost equal to length of rest of shark; lower lobe short but strong; terminal lobe very small (Ref. 13570). Dark blue on back and sides, underside white; no white patch over pectoral fin bases (Ref. 5578).

Primarily an oceanic species but sometimes close inshore (Ref. 247, 5578, 58302); neritic to oceanic, 0-152 m (Ref. 11230). Epipelagic (Ref. 58302). Mesopelagic in the tropics; may enter atoll lagoons (Ref. 37816). Stuns its prey with its tail, presumably feeding on small fishes and cephalopods (Ref. 6871). Ovoviviparous, embryos feeding on yolk sac and other ova produced by the mother (Ref. 43278, 50449). Sometimes caught by ski-boat anglers (Ref. 5578). Utilized for human consumption, liver oil for vitamin extraction, hides for leather, and fins for shark-fin soup (Ref. 13570). A very common catch in the tuna and shark longline, and tuna drift net fisheries (Ref.58048). Maximum and common size of males estimated from discussion in Ref. 247. Adult females may reach at least 330 cm TL (Ref. 47613).


IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 57073)	Threat to humans
Not Evaluated	Harmless (Ref. 13570)

Human uses
Fisheries: commercial; gamefish: yes


More information
Countries FAO areas Ecosystems Occurrences Introductions Ecology Diet Food items Food consumption Ration	Common names Synonyms Metabolism Predators Ecotoxicology Reproduction Maturity Spawning Eggs Egg development	Age/Size Growth Length-weight Length-length Length-frequencies Morphometrics Morphology Larvae Larval dynamics Recruitment	Other references Biblio Aquaculture Aquaculture profile Strains Genetics Allele frequencies Heritability Diseases Processing	Collaborators Pictures Stamps Sounds Ciguatera Speed Swim. type Gill area Otoliths Brains Vision

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Internet sources

Estimation of some characteristics with mathematical models

Resilience (Ref. 69278)

Very Low, minimum population doubling time more than 14 years (Fec=2; tm=7-9; tmax = 29)


Vulnerability (Ref. 59153)	Price category (Ref. 80766)
High to very high vulnerability (73 of 100)	Not marketed/unknown

Entered by Carpenter, Kent E.

Modified by Ortañez, Auda Kareen

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Page last modified by : elaxamana, 15 July 2009

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