Arabian bamboo shark

Open encyclopedia reference

The Arabian carpetshark (Chiloscyllium arabicum) is a species of carpet shark in the family Hemiscylliidae that is known for inhabiting coral reefs and other shallow shallow habitats from the Persian Gulf to the coast of India. Reaching 78 cm (31 in) long, this shark is characterized by a slender, plain brown body, and by two dorsal fins with straight trailing margins, the second being smaller but longer-based than the first. The Arabian carpetshark feeds on bony fishes and invertebrates. Reproduction is oviparous with an annual cycle; females deposit egg capsules four at a time and the young hatch after 70–80 days. This small shark is often captured as bycatch but rarely used by humans as food. It has been assessed as Near Threatened by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), as there is increasing fishing pressure and habitat degradation within its range. It does well in aquariums and has been bred in captivity.

Wikipedia contributors, Arabian carpetshark; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T09:01:37.681726+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.

Identity & source status

Scientific name

Chiloscyllium arabicum Gubanov, 1980

Name authority

Gubanov, 1980

Common name

Arabian bamboo shark

Rank

species

Accepted status

accepted

Kingdom

Animalia

Phylum

Chordata

Class

Elasmobranchii

Order

Orectolobiformes

Family

Hemiscylliidae

Genus

Chiloscyllium

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.

1. domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
2. kingdomAnimalia
3. phylumChordata
4. subphylumVertebrata
5. infraphylumGnathostomata
6. parvphylumChondrichthyes
7. classElasmobranchii
8. subclassNeoselachii
9. infraclassSelachii
10. superorderGaleomorphi
11. orderOrectolobiformes Compagno, 1973
12. familyHemiscylliidae Gill, 1862
13. genusChiloscyllium Müller & Henle, 1837
14. speciesChiloscyllium arabicum Gubanov, 1980

Close classified relatives

These entries share the source’s genus, Chiloscyllium. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.

Browse 15 records assigned to Hemiscylliidae.

Names & synonyms

Names explicitly linked to this accepted taxon in the source. Synonymy can change with revision.

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.

1. Gubanov, E. P., & Schleib, N. A. (1980). Sharks of the Arabian Gulf. Kuwait Ministry of Public Works, Agracultural Department, Fisheries Division, 1–69 Bilingual text, Arabic and English.]. 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.

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:69SC3. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.