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Orectolobus maculatus (Bonnaterre, 1788)

Spotted wobbegong
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Orectolobus maculatus   AquaMaps   Data sources: GBIF OBIS
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Image of Orectolobus maculatus (Spotted wobbegong)
Orectolobus maculatus
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Classification / Names Common names | Synonyms | Catalog of Fishes(genus, species) | ITIS | CoL | WoRMS | Cloffa

Elasmobranchii (sharks and rays) > Orectolobiformes (Carpet sharks) > Orectolobidae (Carpet or nurse sharks)
Etymology: Orectolobus: orektos (Gr.), stretched out; lobus (L.), from lobos (Gr.), rounded projection or protuberance, referring to long nasal barbels of Squalus barbatus (=O. maculatus). (See ETYFish);  maculatus: Latin for spotted, referring to large, 0-shaped markings that densely cover dorsal surface. (See ETYFish).
More on author: Bonnaterre.

Environment: milieu / climate zone / depth range / distribution range Ecology

Marine; reef-associated; depth range 0 - 248 m (Ref. 106604), usually 0 - 110 m (Ref. 247). Temperate; 20°S - 40°S, 113°E - 154°E

Distribution Countries | FAO areas | Ecosystems | Occurrences | Point map | Introductions | Faunafri

Eastern Indian Ocean: southern Australia, from Western Australia to southern Queensland. Records from Japan and the South China Sea need to be confirmed.

Length at first maturity / Size / Weight / Age

Maturity: Lm ?, range 60 - ? cm
Max length : 320 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 247); common length : 180 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 247)

Short description Identification keys | Morphology | Morphometrics

Dorsal spines (total): 0; Anal spines: 0. Back dark, with light O-shaped markings obscuring darker saddles (Ref. 13577). Caudal fin with its upper lobe hardly elevated above the body axis, with a strong terminal lobe and subterminal notch but no ventral lobe (Ref. 13577).

Biology     Glossary (e.g. epibenthic)

Found on the continental shelf, from the intertidal down to at least 110 m (Ref. 247). Commonly on coral and rocky reefs, under piers, and on sand bottom (Ref. 247). May occur in water barely deep enough to cover the fish, and has been observed climbing ridges between tide pools with its back out of water (Ref. 247). Nocturnal (Ref. 247). Feeds on bottom invertebrates (Ref. 247), including crabs, lobsters and octopuses (Ref. 43278), and bony fishes (Ref. 247), like sea bass, scorpionfishes and luderick (Ref. 43278). Ovoviviparous (Ref. 43278, 50449), with up to 37 pups in a litter (Ref. 247). Known to bite people that step on it or put their feet near its mouth, and can and will bite when molested and provoked (Ref. 247). Flesh highly regarded and sometimes utilized for human consumption (Ref. 247). Skin sometimes utilized for leather (Ref. 247). Regarded as pest by lobster fishers (Ref. 247).

Life cycle and mating behavior Maturities | Reproduction | Spawnings | Egg(s) | Fecundities | Larvae

Ovoviviparous, embryos feed solely on yolk (Ref. 50449). One female had 37. Size at birth about 21 cm. Some anecdotal accounts regarding courtship are given. It is said that males in captivity fight vigorously among themselves while courting females. In the process, females are bitten by males in the gill region and one clasper is inserted. In the wild, the males are attracted to the females by some chemical pheromones possibly released by the latter during the breeding season.

Main reference Upload your references | References | Coordinator | Collaborators

Compagno, L.J.V., 1984. FAO Species Catalogue. Vol. 4. Sharks of the world. An annotated and illustrated catalogue of shark species known to date. Part 1 - Hexanchiformes to Lamniformes. FAO Fish. Synop. 125(4/1):1-249. Rome, FAO. (Ref. 247)

IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 130435)

  Least Concern (LC) ; Date assessed: 23 March 2015

CITES

Not Evaluated

CMS (Ref. 116361)

Not Evaluated

Threat to humans

  Traumatogenic (Ref. 247)





Human uses

Fisheries: minor commercial
FAO - Fisheries: species profile; Publication: search | FishSource |

More information

Trophic ecology
Food items
Diet compositions
Food consumptions
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Predators
Ecology
Ecology
Population dynamics
Growths
Max. ages / sizes
Length-weight rel.
Length-length rel.
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Mass conversions
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Abundances
Life cycle
Reproduction
Maturities
Fecundities
Spawnings
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Egg(s)
Egg developments
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Distribution
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BRUVS - Videos
Anatomy
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Physiology
Body compositions
Nutrients
Oxygen consumptions
Swimming type
Swimming speeds
Visual pigment(s)
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Diseases / Parasites
Toxicities (LC50s)
Genetics
Genetics
Electrophoreses
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Internet sources

AFORO (otoliths) | Aquatic Commons | BHL | Cloffa | BOLDSystems | Websites from users | Check FishWatcher | CISTI | Catalog of Fishes: genus, species | DiscoverLife | ECOTOX | FAO - Fisheries: species profile; Publication: search | Faunafri | Fishipedia | Fishtrace | GenBank: genome, nucleotide | GloBI | Google Books | Google Scholar | Google | IGFA World Record | MitoFish | National databases | Otolith Atlas of Taiwan Fishes | PubMed | Reef Life Survey | Socotra Atlas | Tree of Life | Wikipedia: Go, Search | World Records Freshwater Fishing | Zoological Record

Estimates based on models

Preferred temperature (Ref. 123201): 15.3 - 24.4, mean 18 °C (based on 290 cells).
Phylogenetic diversity index (Ref. 82804):  PD50 = 0.5012   [Uniqueness, from 0.5 = low to 2.0 = high].
Bayesian length-weight: a=0.00389 (0.00180 - 0.00842), b=3.12 (2.94 - 3.30), in cm total length, based on all LWR estimates for this body shape (Ref. 93245).
Trophic level (Ref. 69278):  4.2   ±0.64 se; based on food items.
Generation time: 5.5 ( na - na) years. Estimated as median ln(3)/K based on 1 growth studies.
Resilience (Ref. 120179):  Low, minimum population doubling time 4.5 - 14 years (Fec=37).
Fishing Vulnerability (Ref. 59153):  High vulnerability (61 of 100).
Price category (Ref. 80766):   Unknown.
Nutrients (Ref. 124155):  Calcium = 2.26 [0.36, 9.58] mg/100g; Iron = 0.116 [0.027, 0.322] mg/100g; Protein = 20.2 [17.9, 22.4] %; Omega3 = 0.234 [0.093, 0.566] g/100g; Selenium = 12.4 [3.3, 39.0] μg/100g; VitaminA = 14.1 [3.5, 52.4] μg/100g; Zinc = 0.248 [0.117, 0.533] mg/100g (wet weight);