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Selected Works of Mahmood Shivji
Article
First record of the megamouth shark, Megachasma pelagios, (family Megachasmidae) in the tropical western North Atlantic Ocean
Marine Biodiversity Records
  • Grisel Rodriguez-Ferrer, Recreational and Sport Fisheries Division
  • Bradley M. Wetherbee, University of Rhode Island
  • Michelle Schärer, HJR Reefscaping
  • Craig Lilyestrom, Recreational and Sport Fisheries Division
  • Jan P. Zegarra, Caribbean Field Office
  • Mahmood Shivji, Nova Southeastern University
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Document Type
Article
Publication Date
1-1-2017
Keywords
  • Caribbean,
  • DNA barcoding,
  • First record,
  • Megamouth shark,
  • Puerto Rico,
  • Range extension
Disciplines
Abstract

Background: A new record of Megachasma pelagios is here reported for the tropical western North Atlantic Ocean from Puerto Rico. Results: On December 10, 2016, a tourist reported an unusual stranded shark on Mojacasabe Beach, Cabo Rojo, on the southwestern coast of Puerto Rico. Visual examination of the carcass and mitochondrial DNA analysis from a dorsal fin sample revealed it to be a 457 cm female megamouth shark. Conclusion: This record represents the first record of M. pelagios for the tropical western North Atlantic Ocean within the Caribbean Sea of southwest Puerto Rico and only the second record of M. pelagios from the North Atlantic.

Creative Commons License
Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International
ResearcherID
G-4080-2013
DOI
10.1186/s41200-017-0117-y
Citation Information
Grisel Rodriguez-Ferrer, Bradley M. Wetherbee, Michelle Schärer, Craig Lilyestrom, et al.. "First record of the megamouth shark, Megachasma pelagios, (family Megachasmidae) in the tropical western North Atlantic Ocean" Marine Biodiversity Records Vol. 10 Iss. 1 (2017) ISSN: 1755-2672
Available at: http://works.bepress.com/mahmood-shivji/217/