Australia country information

Common names: Bullhead, Bullhead shark, Dogshark
Occurrence: native
Salinity: marine
Abundance: | Ref:
Importance: of no interest | Ref: Last, P.R. and J.D. Stevens, 1994
Aquaculture: | Ref:
Regulations: | Ref:
Uses: no uses
Comments: Occurs in southern Australia, from Houtman Abrolhos in Western Australia to Byron Bay in New South Wales, including Tasmania (Ref. 6871). Records from York Sound in northern Western Australia and Moreton Bay in Queensland are questionable (Ref. 6871). Bycatch of the southern shark gillnet fishery but it not used as food (Ref. 6871). Also Ref. 247, 7300, 9838, 26346.
National Checklist:
Country Information: https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/resources/the-world-factbook/geos/as.html
National Fisheries Authority: http://www.csiro.au/
Occurrences: Occurrences Point map
Main Ref: Last, P.R. and J.D. Stevens, 1994
National Database:

Common names from other countries

Requin dormeur taureau, Dormilón toro, قؤش نوّام ثَوْر, ... more

Classification / Names Common names | Synonyms | Catalog of Fishes(genus, species) | ITIS | CoL | WoRMS | Cloffa

Elasmobranchii (sharks and rays) > Heterodontiformes (Bullhead and horn sharks) > Heterodontidae (Bullhead, horn, or Port Jackson sharks)
Etymology: Heterodontus: heteros (Gr.), different; odontos (Gr.), tooth, referring to pointy teeth (for clutching prey) at front of jaws, different than rounded molar-like teeth (for grinding hard-shelled invertebrates) at the back. (See ETYFish); portusjacksoni: Of Port Jackson, Sydney, New South Wales, near Botany Bay, type locality. (See ETYFish).

Environment: milieu / climate zone / depth range / distribution range Ecology

Marine; demersal; oceanodromous (Ref. 51243); depth range 0 - 275 m (Ref. 26346). Subtropical; 23°S - 44°S, 112°E - 154°E

Distribution Countries | FAO areas | Ecosystems | Occurrences | Point map | Introductions | Faunafri

Western Pacific: southern Australia (including Western Australia) and one record from New Zealand. Heterodontus bona-spei from South Africa probably refers to this species.

Length at first maturity / Size / Weight / Age

Maturity: L_m 87.5, range 80 - 95 cm
Max length : 165 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 247); common length : 137 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 247)

Short description Identification keys | Morphology | Morphometrics

Dorsal spines (total): 2; Anal spines: 0. Harness-like narrow dark stripes on back (Ref. 9838).

A common shark of the continental shelves (Ref. 9838), from close inshore at the intertidal zone to 275 m (Ref. 6871). Segregates by sex and maturity stage (Ref. 6871). Nocturnal, hides in caves and rocky gullies during the day (Ref. 6871). Feeds on benthic invertebrates, primarily echinoderms (Ref. 247). Oviparous (Ref. 50449). Eggs with spiral flanges but lack tendrils (Ref. 6871). Undergoes yearly migrations to spawning sites during breeding season (Ref. 247). Considered harmless to people, but can deliver a painful nip when provoked (Ref. 247).

Life cycle and mating behavior Maturities | Reproduction | Spawnings | Egg(s) | Fecundities | Larvae

Oviparous. Distinct pairing with embrace (Ref. 205). Undergoes yearly migrations to breeding sites. Females lay about 10 to 16 (commonly 10-12) eggs in rock crevices on shallow sheltered reefs at depths of 1-5 m (rarely 20-30 m) during August and September (rarely in July and October). In captivity, females lay 2 eggs a day every 8-17 days. Eggs are hatched after 9-12 months and young then move into nursery areas in bays and estuaries. After the breeding season, males move into deeper waters followed by the females in late September or October.

Main reference Upload your references | References | Coordinator | Collaborators

Compagno, L.J.V., 1984. FAO Species Catalogue. Vol. 4. Sharks of the world. An annotated and illustrated catalogue of shark species known to date. Part 1 - Hexanchiformes to Lamniformes. FAO Fish. Synop. 125(4/1):1-249. Rome, FAO. (Ref. 247)

IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 130435)

Least Concern (LC) ; Date assessed: 18 February 2015

CITES (Ref. 128078)

Not Evaluated

CMS (Ref. 116361)

Not Evaluated

Threat to humans

Traumatogenic (Ref. 247)

Human uses

Fisheries: minor commercial; aquarium: public aquariums

FAO(Fisheries: species profile; publication : search) | FishSource |

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Estimates based on models

Preferred temperature (Ref. 115969): 14.1 - 22.6, mean 16.8 (based on 178 cells).

Phylogenetic diversity index (Ref. 82804): PD₅₀ = 0.5059 [Uniqueness, from 0.5 = low to 2.0 = high].

Bayesian length-weight: a=0.00347 (0.00255 - 0.00471), b=3.17 (3.08 - 3.26), in cm Total Length, based on LWR estimates for this species (Ref. 93245).

Trophic level (Ref. 69278): 3.5 ±0.48 se; based on food items.

Resilience (Ref. 120179): Low, minimum population doubling time 4.5 - 14 years (tm=8-10; Fec=10).

Fishing Vulnerability (Ref. 59153): High to very high vulnerability (72 of 100).

Price category (Ref. 80766): Unknown.

Heterodontus portusjacksoni (Meyer, 1793)