Blacktip shark
Carcharhinus limbatus
Valid name (FishBase; confirmed in Eschmeyer's Catalog of Fishes and WoRMS, October 2026).
- English
- Blacktip shark
- Scientific
- Carcharhinus limbatus
- Dhivehi
- ތުންހިމަ މިޔަރުThun hima miyaru
- Group
- Sharks
- Maximum size
- Up to about 2.9 m (total length); commonly 1.5 m; max. published weight 122.8 kg (FishBase); MRS 1997 gives common to 1.5 m; max. 2.5 m
- Depth and habitat
- Coral reefs and reef-associated habitats, recorded from 0 to 140 m (usually 0 to 30 m); also enters brackish water
- IUCN status
- VU · VulnerableVulnerable (VU), assessed 2020CITES Appendix II
Description
A stout requiem shark with a long, pointed snout, grey with a brassy sheen above and white below, with black tips on most fins and a dark band along the side. It is a fast hunter of schooling fish and sometimes leaps clear of the water.
In the Maldives
Dhivehi name thun hima miyaru (MRS 1997). MRS notes it had been recorded in the Maldives only from Laamu Atoll. Sharks are fully protected in the Maldives (since 2010).
Sources
- fishbase.se /summary/Carcharhinus-limbatus.html
- fao.org /4/AD471E/AD471E00.htm
- dv.wikipedia.org /wiki/ތުންހިމަ_މިޔަރު
- commons.wikimedia.org /wiki/File:Carcharhinus_limbatus_-_Caraibische_zwartpunthaai.jpg
Dhivehi name source: M.R.S. (1997) Fishes of the Maldives (FAO/BOBP MAG/21) gives 'Thun hima miyaru' (Latin form). Thaana from the Dhivehi Wikipedia article 'ތުންހިމަ މިޔަރު' (derived from the MRS 1997 Dhivehi edition); it matches the Latin form.