Indian swellshark
| Indian swellshark | |
|---|---|
| Scientific classification | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Chondrichthyes |
| Subclass: | Elasmobranchii |
| Division: | Selachii |
| Order: | Carcharhiniformes |
| Family: | Scyliorhinidae |
| Genus: | Cephaloscyllium |
| Species: | C. silasi |
| Binomial name | |
| Cephaloscyllium silasi (Talwar, 1974) | |
| Range of the Indian swellshark | |
The Indian swellshark (Cephaloscyllium silasi) is a catshark of the family Scyliorhinidae found in the western Indian Ocean near Quilon, India and Sauqira Bay, Oman. Specimens caught as bycatch near North Sentinel Island of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands have been genetically identified as Indian swellsharks, expanding its known range to the Andaman Sea. It grows to about 36 cm in length, and can expand its body by taking in air or water to make it appear larger to predators.
The shark is considered to be critically endangered. It is threatened by fishing pressure as it is caught incidentally by deep-water trawling practices, which occur throughout its entire known range.