The Sharks— Part One 



323 



A Leopard shark ( Triakis semifasciata ) . 



Courtesy, California Bureau of Marine Fisheries 



Gray Smoothhound (Mustelus calif ornicus Gill, 1864) 



Common in the shallow waters of southern California, it ranges from 

 northern California to Lower California. It grows to about IV2 feet. Its 

 teeth— blunt, pavement-like, and without points— distinguish it from the 

 Brown Smoothhound, whose teeth have sharp points. 



SicKLEFiN Smoothhound {Mustelus lunulatus Jordan and Gilbert, 1882) 

 A 5-foot, 814-inch Sicklefin was recorded in San Diego, believed to 

 be the northern limit of its range, which takes it as far south as Colombia. 

 It differs principally from M. californicus by having slightly longer 

 pectoral fins. 



Brown Smoothhound (Triakis henlei Gill, 1862) 



Studies have shown that this is the most abundant shark in San Fran- 

 cisco Bay, making up an estimated half of the total shark population. 

 It may well be the most abundant shark along the entire California Coast. 

 It grows to about 38 inches. 



The Leopard shark {Triakis semifasciata Girard, 1854) is also a 

 member of this family. The Leopard, a small shark whose maximum 

 known length is around 5 feet, was, until recently, invariably described 

 as "harmless"— a reckless word to apply to any shark. The Leopard has 

 not been called harmless by anyone who knows of an inexplicable un- 

 provoked attack a 3 -foot Leopard made in 1955 on a skin-diver in Trini- 

 dad Bay, California. The skin-diver managed to fight oflF the little shark, 

 and was not seriously injured. The shark was positively identified be- 

 cause the Leopard has well-defined markings: a black crossband and 

 black spots along its back and sides. Sometimes its undercoloring is iri- 

 descent. 



The Leopard, common in shallow waters along the southern Cali- 

 fornia coast and in bays farther north, is found from Oregon to Magda- 

 lena Bay, Lower California. 



