| Pygmy shark | |
|---|---|
| Drawing by Dr Tony Ayling | |
| Conservation status | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Chondrichthyes |
| Subclass: | Elasmobranchii |
| Order: | Squaliformes |
| Family: | Dalatiidae |
| Genus: | Euprotomicrus T. N. Gill, 1865 |
| Species: | E. bispinatus |
| Binomial name | |
| Euprotomicrus bispinatus (Quoy & Gaimard, 1824) |
|
| Range of pygmy shark (in blue) | |
The pygmy shark, Euprotomicrus bispinatus, the second-smallest of all the shark species after the dwarf lanternshark, is a sleeper shark of the Dalatiidae family, the only member of the genus Euprotomicrus. Their length is up to about 25 cm (10 in) for females and about 22 cm (8.7 in) for males.
Pygmy sharks are ovoviviparous and produce about 8 young in each litter.