Sulu gollumshark

Gollum suluensis is a small shark species in the genus Gollum within the existing of only three types of family Pseudotriakidae. The species was described in 2011 based on seven type specimens that were acquired at the fish market of Puerto Princesa, the capital of the Philippine province of Palawan. The specimens are from the western Sulu Sea and were caught on the island shelf at a depth of about 730 meters.

Features

The largest known specimen of Gollum suluensis is 58.5 inches long. Gollum suluensis differs from Gollum attenuatus, the second species of the genus by its darker, simpler and less contrasting color, the softer body, the wider, bell-shaped skull, the shorter and broader snout, which larger nostrils, the other foot, the larger viewing distance, the smaller injection hole and the larger pectoral fins. Eye diameter is 1.4 to 1.5 times greater than the nose diameter and 4.8 times larger than the diameter of the injection hole. The head width is 12 to 14% of the standard length. The trailing edges of the two dorsal fins are not clearly concave, the tips of the dorsal fins and the lower margin of the caudal fin are dark. The swirl number is 151 to 154