Carcharhiniformes (; ), commonly called ground sharks, are the largest order of sharks, with over 270 species. They include a number of common types, such as cat sharks, swellsharks, and hound sharks.

Members of this order are characterized by the presence of a nictitating membrane over the eye, two dorsal fins, an anal fin, and five gill slits.

The families in the order Carcharhiniformes are expected to be revised; recent DNA studies show that some of the conventional groups are not monophyletic.

The oldest members of the order appeared during the Middle-Late Jurassic, which have teeth and body forms that are morphologically similar to living catsharkss. Carchariniformes first underwent major diversification during the Late Cretaceous, initially as mostly small-sized forms, before radiating into medium and large body sizes during the Cenozoic.

Families

Eschmeyer's Catalog of Fishes classifies the Carcharhiniformes into two suborders and twelve families:

Suborder Scyliorhinoidei

• Family Scyliorhinidae Gill, 1862 (catsharks)

Suborder Carcharhinoidei

• Family Atelomycteridae E. G. White, 1936 (coloured catsharks)

• Family Pentanchidae Smith, 1912 (deepwater catsharks)

• Family Dichichthyidae W. T. White, Stewart, Reuben O'Neill & Naylor, 2024 (bristle sharks)

• Family Pseudotriakidae Gill, 1893 (false catsharks)

• Family Proscylliidae Fowler, 1941 (finback catsharks)

• Family Leptochariidae Gray, 1851 (barbeled houndsharks)

Family Triakidae Gray, 1851 (houndsharks)

• Subfamily Triakinae Gray, 1851 (smooth-hounds)

• Subfamily Galeorhininae Gill, 1862 (school sharks)

• Family Hemigaleidae J.C.F. Hasse, 1878 (weasel sharks)

• Family Carcharhinidae D. S. Jordan & Evermann, 1896 (requiem sharks)

• Family Galeocerdonidae Poey, 1875 (tiger sharks)

• Family Sphyrnidae Bonaparte, 1840 (hammerhead sharks)

Fossil genera

The following fossil genera of Carcharhiniformes are also known:

• Genus †Altusmirus Fuchs, Engelbrecht, Lukeneder & Kriwet, 2017

• Genus †Corysodon Saint-Seine, 1949

• Genus †Platyrhizodon Guinot, Underwood, Cappetta & Ward, 2013

• Genus †Vectiscyllium Duffin & Batchelor, 2024

Family Carcharhinidae

• Genus †Abdounia Cappetta, 1980

• Genus †Archaeogaleus Guinot, Cappetta & Adnet, 2014

• Genus †Danogaleus Noubhani & Cappetta, 1997

• Genus †Eogaleus Cappetta, 1975

• Genus †Eorhincodon Li, 1997

• Genus †Fornicatus Fuchs, Engelbrecht, Lukeneder & Kriwet, 2018

• Genus †Kruckowlamna Laurito Mora, 1999

• Genus †Misrichthys Case & Cappetta, 1990

• Genus †Pseudabdounia Ebersole, Cicimurri & Stringer, 2019

Family †Florenceodontidae Cappetta, Morrison & Adnet, 2019

• Genus †Florenceodon Cappetta, Morrison & Adnet, 2019

Family †Leptocarchariidae Adnet et al., 2020

• Genus †Leptocarcharias Adnet et al., 2020

Family Hemigaleidae

• Genus †Moerigaleus Underwood & Ward, 2011

Family Galeocerdonidae

• Genus †Physogaleus Cappetta, 1980

Family †Pseudoscyliorhinidae Stumpf, Scheer & Kriwet, 2019

• Genus †Diprosopovenator Stumpf, Scheer & Kriwet, 2019

• Genus †Pseudoscyliorhinus Müller & Diedrich, 1991

Family Pentanchidae

• Genus †Pseudoapristurus Pollerspöck & Straube, 2017

Family Proscyllidae

• Genus †Praeproscyllium Underwood & Ward, 2004

Family Scyliorhinidae

• Genus †Bavariscyllium Thies, 2005

• Genus †Cadiera Guinot, Cappetta & Adnet, 2014

• Genus †Casieria Noubhani & Cappetta, 1997

• Genus †Crassescyliorhinus Underwood & Ward, 2008

• Genus †Cretascyliorhinus Underwood & Mitchell, 1999

• Genus †Foumtizia Noubhani & Cappetta, 1997

• Genus †Megascyliorhinus Cappetta & Ward, 1977

• Genus †Microscyliorhinus Case, 1994

• Genus †Orthodon Coquand, 1860

• Genus †Pachyscyllium Reinecke, Moths, Grant & Breitkreuz, 2005

• Genus †Palaeoscyllium Wagner, 1857

• Genus †Platyrhizoscyllium Adnet, 2006

• Genus †Porodermoides Noubhani & Cappetta, 1997

• Genus †Premontreia Cappetta, 1992

• Genus †Prohaploblepharus Underwood & Ward, 2008

• Genus †Protoscyliorhinus Herman, 1977

• Genus †Pteroscyllium Cappetta, 1980

• Genus †Scyliorhinotheca Kiel, Peckmann & Simon, 2013

• Genus †Sigmoscyllium Guinot, Underwood, Cappetta & Ward, 2013

• Genus †Stenoscyllium Noubhani & Cappetta, 1997

• Genus †Thiesus Guinot, Cappetta & Adnet, 2014

• Genus †Tingaleus Cappetta, 1993

Family Triakidae

• Genus †Archaeotriakis Case, 1978

• Genus †Gomphogaleus Adnet & Cappetta, 2008

• Genus †Kallodentis Engelbrecht, Mörs, Reguero & Kriwet, 2017

• Genus †Khouribgaleus Noubhani & Cappetta, 1997

• Genus †Meridiogaleus Engelbrecht, Mörs, Reguero & Kriwet, 2017

• Genus †Pachygaleus Cappetta, 1992

• Genus †Palaeogaleus Gurr, 1962

• Genus †Palaeotriakis Guinot, Underwood, Cappetta & Ward, 2013

• Genus †Rhaibodus Böhm, 1926

• Genus †Squatigaleus Cappetta, 1989

• Genus †Xystrogaleus Adnet, 2006

References

Further reading

• Froese, Rainer, and Daniel Pauly, eds. (2013) Fish Identification: Ground sharks in FishBase. March 2013 version.

External links

• Order Carcharhiniformes