Bythaelurus bachi Weigmann, Ebert, Clerkin, Stehmann & Naylor, 2016
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
Bythaelurus bachi, commonly known as Bach's catshark, is a species of shark belonging to the family Pentanchidae, the deepwater catsharks. This shark is found on the southern Madagascar Ridge in the southwestern Indian Ocean. This stout-bodied catshark is thought to inhabit the deep sea at depths of 910–1,365 m (2,986–4,478 ft).
Compared to all of its congeners in Western Indian Ocean, Bach's catshark has higher diversity of dermal denticle morphology in general, lighter body coloration, and the presence of numerous partially composite papillae on its tongue and palate (the roof of a mouth).
Wikipedia contributors, Bythaelurus bachi; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T19:13:21.237423+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Bythaelurus bachi Weigmann, Ebert, Clerkin, Stehmann & Naylor, 2016
- Name authority
- Weigmann, Ebert, Clerkin, Stehmann & Naylor, 2016
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Elasmobranchii
- Order
- Carcharhiniformes
- Family
- Scyliorhinidae
- Genus
- Bythaelurus
- 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
- familyScyliorhinidae Gill, 1862
- genusBythaelurus Compagno, 1988
- speciesBythaelurus bachi Weigmann, Ebert, Clerkin, Stehmann & Naylor, 2016
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Bythaelurus. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Bythaelurus stewarti Weigmann, Kaschner & Thiel, 2018 | ScyliorhinidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Bythaelurus canescens (Günther, 1878) | ScyliorhinidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Bythaelurus clevai (Séret, 1987) | ScyliorhinidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Bythaelurus dawsoni (Springer, 1971) | ScyliorhinidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Bythaelurus immaculatus (Chu & Meng, 1982) | ScyliorhinidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
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.
- Weigmann, S., Ebert, D. A., Clerkin, P. J., Stehmann, M. F. W., & Naylor, G. J. P. (2016). Bythaelurus bachi n. sp., a new deep-water catshark (Carcharhiniformes, Scyliorhinidae) from the southwestern Indian Ocean, with a review of Bythaelurus species and a key to their identification. Zootaxa, 4208. https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.4208.5.1 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:P2LJ. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.