Article: Spiny dogfish

?Spiny dogfish Conservation status: Vulnerable
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Chondrichthyes Order: Squaliformes Family: Squalidae Genus: Squalus Species: S. acanthias
Binomial name
Squalus acanthias Linnaeus, 1758

The spiny dogfish or piked dogfish is a type of small shark and one of the best known of the dogfish. There are actually several species to which the name is applied, but all are readily distinguished by their having two spines, one in front of each dorsal fin, and their lack of an anal fin. They are members of the family Squalidae in the order Squaliformes.

The spiny dogfish has dorsal spines, no anal fin, and white spots along its back. They can grow up to 107 cm and are greyish brown in color. Males are identified by their "claspers," while females have none. It is found in shallow waters and offshore in most parts of the world, especially in temperate waters.

It feeds on small fish and invertebrates, and can be present in such great numbers that it can seriously impact commercial fisheries. It is also a common prey item for large fish, other sharks, and marine mammals. Reproduction is ovoviviparous with litters up to 15 but averaging 6 or 7.

Spiny dogfish are fished for food in Europe, the United States, Canada, New Zealand and Chile. The meat is primarily consumed in England, France, the Benelux countries and Germany. The fins and tails are processed into fin needles and are used in less expensive versions of shark fin soup in Chinese cuisine. In England it is sold in "fish and chip shops" as "rock salmon", in France it is sold as "small salmon" (saumonette) and in Belgium it is sold as "sea eel" (zeepaling). It is also used as fertilizer, liver oil, and pet food, and, because of its availability and manageable size, as a popular vertebrate dissection specimen, especially in high schools.

See also

• List of sharks