BeyondJaws: rediscovering the ‘lost sharks’ of southern Africa

Annotated checklist of the living sharks, batoids and chimaeras (Chondrichthyes) of the world, with a focus on biogeographical diversity

“…The nomenclature and systematics follow Ebert et al (2013b) and Ebert & van Hees (2015) with the subsequent exceptions: Hemiscylliidae instead of Hemiscyllidae and Parascylliidae instead of Parascyllidae after Compagno (1984a) and van der Laan et al (2014), as well as Proscylliidae instead of Proscyllidae according to Compagno (1984b) and van der Laan et al (2014). The placement of the two genera Rhina Bloch & Schneider 1801 and Rhynchobatus Müller & Henle 1837 is a synthesis of classifications by McEachran et al (1996) and Compagno (1999) with both genera positioned in their own families (Rhinidae and Rhynchobatidae, respectively), which are placed in the single order Rhiniformes.…”

“…The placement of the two genera Rhina Bloch & Schneider 1801 and Rhynchobatus Müller & Henle 1837 is a synthesis of classifications by McEachran et al (1996) and Compagno (1999) with both genera positioned in their own families (Rhinidae and Rhynchobatidae, respectively), which are placed in the single order Rhiniformes. The placement of those taxa in the Rajiformes by Ebert et al (2013b), van der Laan et al (2014), and Ebert & van Hees (2015) is not followed due to morphological peculiarities and molecular results by Naylor et al (2012b). The same applies to the family Rhinobatidae which is placed in the Rhinobatiformes instead of the Rajiformes after Compagno (1999) and Straube et al (2013).…”

“…Henderson et al (2015) mentioned a specimen of D. Bonfil & Abdallah, 2004). Specimens with DW of up to 320 (Raje & Zacharia, 2009) Heemstra & Heemstra, 2004;Last et al, 2010a) 972 (Ebert & van Hees, 2015;Ebert, 2015, pers. comm.…”

“…The checklist presented here is the first global checklist of chondrichthyan species that contains not only scientific and vernacular names plus the according authorships Ebert & van Hees (2015) and publication dates, but also information on maximum size, geographic and depth distributions, and comments on taxonomically problematic species and recent and regularly overlooked synonymizations. Since the formerly most recent global checklist of cartilaginous fishes by Compagno (2005), 217 new chondrichthyan species have been described, nine of which have been synonymized already, and many species described earlier have also been synonymized or resurrected.…”

First North Pacific records of the pointy nosed blue chimaera, Hydrolagus cf. trolli (Chondrichthyes: Chimaeriformes: Chimaeridae)

“…This species, or a similar looking species, is known to occur over a much broader geographical range in the Southern Hemisphere, e.g. South Africa (Ebert and van Hees, 2015), but to date there are no descriptions of this species from the Northern Hemisphere. A specimen of H. cf.…”