C+punctatum

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Kingdom__: Animalia __Phylum__: Chordata __Class__: Chondrichthyes __Order__: Orectolobiformes __Family__: Hemiscyllidae

__Year assessed__: 2003 __Justification for being endangered__: There is an overfishing for human consumption. There is a habitat loss due to destructive fishing methods on coral reefs. Brown banded bamboo sharks are also collected for the display-acquarium trade. Assessed as near threatened globablly because of concern over the significant impact that these practices are probably having on this type of shark. __Survival Trends__: This species' population is decreasing.

__Latitudes of Habitat__: Samut, Thailand. Carpentaria, Australia. Queensland, Australia. __Location__: Found in the coral reef (generally near the sand, sand/mud substrates). Brown banded bamboo sharks are found in deeper and darker waters. __Ocean Found in__: Pacific Ocean

__Temperature__: 0-28 degrees Celcius __Salinity__: 33-36 In the Pacific Ocean earthquakes, volcanoes, and subduction of plates are common __geologic processes__ that can be found. __Currents in the Pacific Ocean__: Aletuian Current, North Pacific Drift, Humboldt Current, Kuroshio Current, Oyashio Current, Mindanao Current, North Equatorial Current, South Equatorial Current, and Cromwell Current. __Tides in the Pacific Ocean__: 2.274 meters

__Migraton Patterns__: No migration patterns.

__Appearance__: Average adult size is forty inches (maximum being 105 cm). Young sharks have beautiful, dark bands along their whole body. These bands fade over time. Adult sharks are light brown without bands.

__Reproduction__: They lay eggs that are enclosed in elongated flattened egg-cases. In captivity, reproduction takes about four months. Reproduction does not seem to be observed in the wild.

__Anatomy__: Bamboo sharks have a slender body with an elongated tail. They have dorsal fins, caudal fin, perctoral fins, and pelvic fins. The dorsal fins are of equal size. The mouth is in front of the eyes and it had spircales below and behind it. The nostrils are on the end of the pre-oral snout. Small "whiskers" are called barbels which are sensory organs that hang from each nostril.

__Food Chain__: Hunts invertebrates and crustaceans. Examples are crabs, squid, and shrimp. Hunted by larger sharks.

__Economic Importance__: Used for commercial sides of fisheries and acquariums.

__Threats and Reasons for Endangerment__: -Widespread collection for human consumption in artisanal and commercial fisheries. -Habitat damage over much of it's range. -Inshore seine-netting, trap fishing and bait fishing are primary modes of collection. -Damage and destruction of coral reef habitat from dynamite fishing. -Other destructive fishing practices and pollution.

__Conservation Efforts__: They are protected in a significant range on east coast of Australia. Fishing is allowed in these areas, but the brown banded bamboo shark is not targeted. If they are caught in a bycatch, they will most likely survive.

__Solutions__: 1. Banning the collection of Bamboo sharks for acquarium purposes. 2. Banning destructive fishing methods in areas that brown banded bamboo sharks live to prevent habitat damage. 3. Learning more about these sharks to understand the species better and learn what would help save them.

__Interesting Facts__: -Brown banded bamboo sharks can live up to 12 hours out of water. -Nocturnal shark. -Can live for approximately 25 years.

__Scavenger Hunt Questions__: 1. Does the bamboo shark have any sensory organs? If so, what are they? 2. Give one reason for this species being endangered. 3. How long does it take to reproduce?