blackspotted smoothhound
Mustelus punctulatus Risso, 1827
Accepted species in Catalogue of Life’s 11 September 2026 base release. This preserves the source classification and available supporting data; it is not a completed species monograph.
Open encyclopedia reference
The blackspotted smooth-hound (Mustelus punctulatus) is a houndshark of the family Triakidae found on the continental shelves of the subtropical eastern Atlantic from the Mediterranean to the Western Sahara, between latitudes 45 and 20°N, from the surface to a depth of 250 m (820 ft). It can reach of a length of 1.5 m (4 ft 11 in).
Wikipedia contributors, Blackspotted smooth-hound; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T08:01:35.800150+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Mustelus punctulatus Risso, 1827
- Name authority
- Risso, 1827
- Common name
- blackspotted smoothhound
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Elasmobranchii
- Order
- Carcharhiniformes
- Family
- Triakidae
- Genus
- Mustelus
- Extinction status
- Not supplied by this source
Source habitat flags: Marine: yes · Freshwater: no · Terrestrial: no. These do not form a complete habitat description.
Classification family tree
Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.
- domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- subphylumVertebrata
- infraphylumGnathostomata
- parvphylumChondrichthyes
- classElasmobranchii
- subclassNeoselachii
- infraclassSelachii
- superorderGaleomorphi
- orderCarcharhiniformes
- familyTriakidae Gray, 1851
- subfamilyTriakinae Gray, 1851
- genusMustelus Linck, 1790
- speciesMustelus punctulatus Risso, 1827
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Mustelus. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Mustelus antarcticus Günther, 1870 | TriakidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| gray smoothhoundMustelus californicus Gill, 1864 | TriakidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| smooth dogfishMustelus canis (Mitchill, 1815) | TriakidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Mustelus fasciatus (Garman, 1913) | TriakidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Mustelus lenticulatus Phillipps, 1932 | TriakidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Mustelus mento Cope, 1877 | TriakidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| smooth houndMustelus mustelus (Linnaeus, 1758) | TriakidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Florida smoothhoundMustelus norrisi Springer, 1939 | TriakidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| whitespotted smooth-houndMustelus palumbes Smith, 1957 | TriakidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Mustelus ravidus White & Last, 2006 | TriakidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Mustelus stevensi White & Last, 2008 | TriakidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Mustelus widodoi White & Last, 2006 | TriakidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
Names & synonyms
Names explicitly linked to this accepted taxon in the source. Synonymy can change with revision.
| Recorded name | Source status |
|---|---|
| Mustellus punctulatus Risso, 1827 Risso, 1827 | synonym |
| Mustelus mediterraneus Quignard & Capapé, 1972 Quignard & Capapé, 1972 | synonym |
Source literature & publication evidence
References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.
- Risso, A. (1827). Histoire naturelle des principales productions de l’Europe méridionale, et particulièrement de celles des environs de Nice et des Alpes maritimes. F. G. Levrault, Paris & Strasbourg. v. 3: i–xvi + 1–480, Pls. 1–16. [Fishes in vol. 3 of 5. Published in 1827, not 1826; see Forest 1958:474]. Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references
Origins, evidence & remaining research
Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.
Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record. A suitable sourced image remains to be added.
Dataset citation & attribution
This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11
Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.
Stable key: col:44R34. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.