Whitetail Dogfish

The whitetail dogfish (Scymnodalatias albicauda) is a very rare sleeper shark of the family Somniosidae, found in the eastern Indian Ocean around southern Australia and New Zealand, at depths of between 150 and 500 m. Its length is up to 1.1 m.

The whitetail dogfish is a rare species known only from a few specimens taken by tuna longliners and trawlers. The dorsal fins are small, the pectoral fins are angular, and there is an asymmetric caudal fin with a dark-tipped upper lobe. Coloration is grey and white, mottled with large brown or black spots, the tail mostly white with black tips.