Pseudotriakidae
Encyclopedia
Pseudotriakidae is a small family
of ground sharks, order Carcharhiniformes
, containing the false catsharks and gollumsharks. It contains the only ground shark species that exhibit intrauterine oophagy
, in which developing fetus
es are nourished by eggs produced by their mother.
Family (biology)
In biological classification, family is* a taxonomic rank. Other well-known ranks are life, domain, kingdom, phylum, class, order, genus, and species, with family fitting between order and genus. As for the other well-known ranks, there is the option of an immediately lower rank, indicated by the...
of ground sharks, order Carcharhiniformes
Carcharhiniformes
The ground sharks, order Carcharhiniformes, are the largest order of sharks. With over 270 species, carcharhiniforms include a number of common types, such as the blue shark, catsharks, swellsharks, and sandbar shark....
, containing the false catsharks and gollumsharks. It contains the only ground shark species that exhibit intrauterine oophagy
Oophagy
Oophagy , literally "egg eating", is the practice of embryos feeding on eggs produced by the ovary while still inside the mother's uterus. The word oophagy is formed from the classical Greek ᾠόν and classical Greek φᾱγεῖν ....
, in which developing fetus
Fetus
A fetus is a developing mammal or other viviparous vertebrate after the embryonic stage and before birth.In humans, the fetal stage of prenatal development starts at the beginning of the 11th week in gestational age, which is the 9th week after fertilization.-Etymology and spelling variations:The...
es are nourished by eggs produced by their mother.
Genera and species
The family contains five known species, of which three have been described.- Gollum Compagno, 1973
- Gollum attenuatus (Garrick, 1954) (Slender smooth-hound)
- Gollum suluensis Last & Gaudiano, 2011 (Sulu gollumshark)
- Gollum sp. B (undescribed species) (Whitemarked gollumshark)
- Pseudotriakis Brito Capello, 1868
- Pseudotriakis microdon Brito Capello, 1868 (False catshark)
- Undescribed genus
- Pygmy false catshark (undescribed species)