Pale ghost shark

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Pale ghost shark
Drawing by Dr Tony Ayling
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Chondrichthyes Subclass: Holocephali Order: Chimaeriformes Family: Chimaeridae Genus: Hydrolagus Species: H. bemisi
Binomial name
Hydrolagus bemisi Didier, 2002

The pale ghost shark, Hydrolagus bemisi, is a shortnose chimaera of the family Chimaeridae, found in deep sub-Antarctic waters on the Campbell Plateau and the The Snares Shelf south of New Zealand's Stewart Island. Its length is up to one m.

The first spine on the first dorsal fin is substantial, the rest of the fin quickly falling away forming a fin that is high and triangular. The second is low and even. The pectoral fins are large and paddle-like, and the pelvic fins are smaller versions of these. The caudal filament is long and stout.

The pale ghost shark replaces the dark ghost shark in deep southern waters. The snout is more rounded and it is paler, as its common name implies. It is pale brown above with a few indistinct darker bars, and white below.

[edit] References

• "Hydrolagus bemisi". FishBase. Ed. Ranier Froese and Daniel Pauly. March 2006 version. N.p.: FishBase, 2006.
• Tony Ayling & Geoffrey Cox, Collins Guide to the Sea Fishes of New Zealand, (William Collins Publishers Ltd, Auckland, New Zealand 1982) ISBN 0-00-216987-8