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First record of the sand tiger shark, Carcharias taurus, from United Arab Emirates waters

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  22 February 2013

Rima W. Jabado*
Affiliation:
Biology Department; Faculty of Science, United Arab Emirates University, PO Box 15551, Al Ain, United Arab Emirates
Saif M. Al Ghais
Affiliation:
Biology Department; Faculty of Science, United Arab Emirates University, PO Box 15551, Al Ain, United Arab Emirates
Waleed Hamza
Affiliation:
Biology Department; Faculty of Science, United Arab Emirates University, PO Box 15551, Al Ain, United Arab Emirates
Aaron C. Henderson
Affiliation:
The School for Field Studies, Center for Marine Resource Studies, South Caicos, Turks & Caicos Islands
Mohamed A. Ahmad
Affiliation:
Dubai Men's College, PO Box 15825, Dubai, United Arab Emirates
*
Correspondence should be addressed to: R.W. Jabado, Biology Department, Faculty of Science, United Arab Emirates University, PO Box 15551, Al Ain, UAE email: rjabado@uaeu.ac.ae
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Abstract

On 18 March 2012, a female specimen of the sand tiger shark, Carcharias taurus, measuring 256 cm, was by-caught by a net fisherman targeting narrow-barred Spanish mackerel, Scomberomorus commerson, off Dalma Island in Abu Dhabi waters. This occurrence represents the first documented record of C. taurus in United Arab Emirates waters. The geographical distribution of this species in the Arabian/Persian Gulf is discussed and updated. The limited records of this species in this body of water may be due to the absence of rigorous species landing reports across countries bordering the Arabian/Persian Gulf.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
Copyright © Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom 2013

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