SECTION 2 



Spiny dogfish {Squalus acanthias) 



Life History Summary 



Spiny dogfish can be found on both sides of the North Atlantic, chiefly 

 in temperate and sub-arctic waters. They occur along our coast from southern 

 Labrador to North Carolina. In the summer they are primarily found north of 

 Cape Cod. They begin their southward migration in October and return north in 

 late spring. At the start of the migration period, the population is centered 

 north of Long Island, whereas by spring a significant part of the population 

 has migrated as far south as Cape Hatteras; however, a portion of the 

 population remains in the Gulf of Maine year round. In the Mid-Atlantic and 

 Mew England areas, spiny dogfish inhabit waters with bottom temperatures 

 ranging from 4° to 18°C while optimum temperatures are between 7.2° and 12.8°C 

 (Cohen 1982). 



Spiny dogfish are not as popular in the United States as in Europe, where 

 they are considered an important food fish rather than a trash or nuisance 

 fish. They are incidentally caught by the recreational fishermen while 

 fishing for more desirable species, and the commercial fishermen may suffer 

 from heavy handline, longline, or net damaye when they encounter a large 

 school of "dogs" while fishing for groundfish (Bigelow and Schroeder 1953). 

 Recently, an export market to various European countries has been developed. 



Male and female spiny dogfish start to mature at age 9. The females bear 

 4-6 live "pups" on their offshore wintering grounds after an 18-22 month 

 gestation operiod. Dogfish school by size until they reach sexual maturity; 



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