LAST UPDATED: 15.07.2023
LAST UPDATED: 15.07.2023
BLACK DOGFISH
BLACK DOGFISH
Centroscyllium fabricii
Centroscyllium fabricii
The black dogfish is primarily a deepwater, benthic species found throughout the continental¹ shelf. Observations of this species, which lives far beyond the range of recreational divers, are limited to by-catch by deep trawlers or other fishing apparatus. The black dogfish is sometimes confused with the Portuguese dogfish which is similar in appearance and size, but whose spines in front of each dorsal fin are smaller and less apparent.
The black dogfish and Greenland shark are the only sharks known² to inhabit the St. Lawrence year-round, all other species being seasonal visitors.
¹ NOAA Fisheries
² There are two known outlier cases of the spiny dogfish (Squalus acanthias) being caught by ice fishers in the Saguenay Fjord in winter (Gallant, J., unpublished data).
NAMES
NAMES
Common name: Black dogfish
French common name: Aiguillat noir
Scientific name: Centroscyllium fabricii — Centroscyllium: Greek, kentron = sting + Greek, skylla = a kind of shark.
Order – Squaliformes
Family – Etmopteridae
Genus – Centroscyllium
Species – C. fabricii
GENERAL DESCRIPTION
GENERAL DESCRIPTION
• Average length of 60 to 75 centimetres.
• Completely black or very dark brown in colour.
• Presence of long white spines before both dorsal fins.
• Lacks anal fin.
• Inhabits depths of between 275 and 1,600 metres.
• Year-round presence in Atlantic Canada and Quebec, including the St. Lawrence Estuary.
DISTRIBUTION
DISTRIBUTION
The black dogfish is found yearround throughout the Gulf of St. Lawrence and maritime estuary, as well as the North Atlantic to Greenland and Europe.
(BELOW) Provisional distribution of the black dogfish, Centroscyllium fabricii, in the St. Lawrence and Atlantic Canada, based on research by the St. Lawrence Shark Observatory. Only select cases are posted to illustrate overall range. This map is updated with new and historical data on an ongoing basis. Map does not include data from the U.S. except borderline cases. To submit additional sightings or captures, please contact us. Click on icons for observation details.
CONSERVATION STATUS
CONSERVATION STATUS
The black dogfish is listed under least concern by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).
Jeffrey Hay Gallant, MSc, is the founder and Scientific Director of the St. Lawrence Shark Observatory (ORS) and a doctoral researcher at UQAM. He made his first shark observation at Peggy’s Cove in 1975, first shark dive off Chebucto Head in 1992, co-led the first Canadian cage dives off Halifax in 2000, and was the first person to film a free-swimming Greenland shark in 2003.
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In the North Atlantic, the white shark is seasonally present in all of the Maritime provinces, Newfoundland and Labrador, and Québec, including the St. Lawrence.
Shark and seal in New France
by Louis Nicolas circa 1690.
Meet the world's most maligned sea creature, the white shark.
Read
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Shark fins banned in Canada? Not really.
In the North Atlantic, the white shark is seasonally present in all of the Maritime provinces, Newfoundland and Labrador, and Québec, including the St. Lawrence.
The Canadian Shark Attack Registry is the first database of all documented human encounters with sharks that have resulted in injury or death in Canada.
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What you need to know.
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