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Issue: Vol. 5380 No. 6: 5 Dec. 2023
Type: Correspondence
Published: 2023-12-05
DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5380.6.7
Page range: 595-598
Abstract views: 535
PDF downloaded: 212

First record of the megamouth shark Megachasma pelagios (Lamniformes: Megachasmidae), from the United Republic of Tanzania

Wildlife Conservation Society; Western Indian Ocean Shark Program; South Africa
Wildlife Conservation Society; Western Indian Ocean Shark Program; South Africa; South African Institute for Aquatic Biodiversity; Grahamstown; South Africa
Wildlife Conservation Society; Tanzania Marine Program; Unguja; Tanzania
Pisces Lamniformes Megachasmidae shark Megachasma pelagios Tanzania

Abstract

The megamouth shark Megachasma pelagios (Lamniformes: Megachasmidae) was described in 1976 from a specimen caught off Hawaii (Taylor et al. 1983) and is the only extant member of its family and genus (Diez et al. 2022). From 1976 to 2010 M. pelagios was considered rare, with only 50 individuals recorded globally during that time (Nakaya 2010). In recent years it is apparent that it is more common and widespread than previously thought, with 273 confirmed records to date across 16 countries in the Atlantic, Indian and Pacific Oceans (Yu et al. 2021; Diez et al. 2022; Skelton et al. 2023). This species is classified as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, as it is globally distributed and does not appear to be heavily impacted by fisheries (Kyne et al. 2019).

 

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