A. Ba

Diet of the Milk Shark, Rhizoprionodon acutus (Chondrichthyes: Carcharhinidae), from the Senegalese Coast

The diet of the milk shark, Rhizoprionodon acutus, from the Senegalese coast was investigated in 3600 specimens. The milk shark diet was composed of teleosts, crustaceans, mollucs, nematodes, annelids, and unidentified invertebrates. R. acutus seemed to have a preference for teleosts (98.75% in terms of IRI). The trophic level of milk shark calculated in this study was 4.2.
09 December 2019

Slow Growth of the Overexploited Milk Shark (Rhizoprionodon acutus) Affects its Sustainability in West Africa

This study estimates the age and growth of the milk shark, Rhizoprionodon acutus, from vertebrae age bands. From December 2009 to November 2010, 423 R. acutus between 37 and 112 cm total length (LT) were sampled along the Senegalese coast. Marginal increment ratio was used to check annual band deposition. Three growth models were adjusted to the length at age and compared using Akaike’s information criterion. Results suggest that R. acutus is a slow-growing species, which render the species particularly vulnerable to heavy fishery exploitation.

09 December 2019