oceanic whitetip shark
Carcharhinus longimanus (Poey, 1861)
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 oceanic whitetip shark (Carcharhinus longimanus) is a large requiem shark inhabiting the pelagic zone of tropical and warm temperate seas. It has a stocky body and iconic elongated rounded fins, with white tips. The species is typically solitary, though they may gather in large numbers at food concentrations. Bony fish and cephalopods are the main components of its diet and females give live birth.
Though slow-moving, the shark is opportunistic and aggressive, and is reputed to be dangerous to shipwreck survivors. The IUCN Red List considers the species to be critically endangered. As with other shark species, the whitetip faces mounting fishing pressure throughout its range, with recent studies show steeply declining populations as they are harvested for their fins and meat.
Wikipedia contributors, Oceanic whitetip shark; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T10:10:28.999525+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Carcharhinus longimanus (Poey, 1861)
- Name authority
- (Poey, 1861)
- Common name
- oceanic whitetip shark
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Elasmobranchii
- Order
- Carcharhiniformes
- Family
- Carcharhinidae
- Genus
- Carcharhinus
- 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
- familyCarcharhinidae Jordan & Evermann, 1896
- genusCarcharhinus Blainville, 1816
- speciesCarcharhinus longimanus (Poey, 1861)
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Carcharhinus. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Carcharhinus leiodon Garrick, 1985 | CarcharhinidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Carcharhinus fitzroyensis (Whitley, 1943) | CarcharhinidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| hardnose sharkCarcharhinus macloti (Müller & Henle, 1839) | CarcharhinidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Carcharhinus obsoletus White, Kyne & Harris, 2019 | CarcharhinidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| finetooth sharkCarcharhinus isodon (Valenciennes, 1839) | CarcharhinidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| blacknose sharkCarcharhinus acronotus (Poey, 1860) | CarcharhinidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| silvertip sharkCarcharhinus albimarginatus (Rüppell, 1837) | CarcharhinidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Carcharhinus cautus (Whitley, 1945) | CarcharhinidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Carcharhinus cerdale Gilbert, 1898 | CarcharhinidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Carcharhinus coatesi (Whitley, 1939) | CarcharhinidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| whitecheek sharkCarcharhinus dussumieri (Müller & Henle, 1839) | CarcharhinidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Galapagos sharkCarcharhinus galapagensis (Snodgrass & Heller, 1905) | CarcharhinidaeChordata | 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 |
|---|---|
| Pterolamiops longimanus (Poey, 1861) (Poey, 1861) | synonym |
| Carcharias insularum Snyder, 1904 Snyder, 1904 | synonym |
| Carcharias obtusus Garman, 1881 Garman, 1881 | synonym |
| Carcharinus longimanus (Poey, 1861) (Poey, 1861) | synonym |
| Pterolamiops budkeri Fourmanoir, 1961 Fourmanoir, 1961 | synonym |
| Squalus longimanus Poey, 1861 Poey, 1861 | synonym |
| Squalus maou Lesson, 1831 Lesson, 1831 | synonym |
| Pterolamiops magnipinnis Smith, 1958 Smith, 1958 | synonym |
| Carcharhinus maou (Lesson, 1831) (Lesson, 1831) | synonym |
| Carcharias longimanus (Poey, 1861) (Poey, 1861) | 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.
- https://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=105794 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:R3P4. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.