A-Z Index

BIGNOSE SHARK

Carcharhinus altimus

SIZE

To about 9 ft (2.7 m).

DISTINGUISHING CHARACTERISTICS

Snout long and bluntly pointed to rounded, as long as or longer than width of mouth
First dorsal fin large, originating over pectoral fin insertion to midlength of pectoral fin inner margin
Pectoral fins long, nearly straight
Color gray to grayish-brown above, white below
Interdorsal ridge

DISTRIBUTION

NJ to Venezuela, including Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean Sea.

HABITAT

Offshore, deeper water near edge of continental shelf, 300-1,410 ft (91-430 m); bottom dwelling; juveniles occasionally in shallower water up to 80 ft (24 m).

SIMILAR SPECIES

Sandbar shark, silky shark, and dusky shark have shorter snouts. Silky shark and dusky shark have first dorsal fins originating farther back, over or behind free tips of pectoral fins. Silky shark has second dorsal fin with free tip length usually more than twice fin height. Blacktip shark and bull shark lack interdorsal ridges.