Overview

The crocodile shark is a slim, big-eyed pelagic species of warm offshore seas. Its field-guide personality is all midwater efficiency: small body, large eyes, and a life mostly hidden far from shore. The family is recognized by large eyes, a slender body, long gill slits, and a narrow-snouted head out of proportion to its small overall size. The crocodile shark is a small oceanic species with records from tropical and subtropical waters in several ocean basins.

It is mostly an offshore shark of the open ocean, occupying the upper to midwater pelagic zone.

Added from the World Register of Marine Species (WoRMS).

Why it matters: Despite the name, it is a small open-ocean shark, not a bulky coastal predator.

Common nameCrocodile shark
Scientific namePseudocarcharias kamoharai
FamilyPseudocarchariidae
OrderLamniformes
Max length1.1 m
Depth range0 to 0 meters
RegionMadagascar, Mozambique, Mozambican EEZ
DietData not available in this offline release.
HabitatMarine waters (habitat data not available locally).
Why it stands outFamily: Pseudocarchariidae

What this shark is

The family is recognized by large eyes, a slender body, long gill slits, and a narrow-snouted head out of proportion to its small overall size.

Where it lives

The crocodile shark is a small oceanic species with records from tropical and subtropical waters in several ocean basins.

It is mostly an offshore shark of the open ocean, occupying the upper to midwater pelagic zone.

How it differs from similar sharks

Family: Pseudocarchariidae

Compare it against Porbeagle, Japanese mackerel shark, and big mouth shark.

Why it is notable

Human interaction is very limited and usually restricted to bycatch in pelagic fisheries.

Species-level taxonomy was verified from Sharkipedia's current species list and taxonomy workbook. In this pass, the narrative fields are cautious family-level placeholders synthesized from broad shark references, chiefly the FAO Sharks of the World catalogue, because a stronger multi-source species-level synthesis was not assembled here without risking invented detail. Replace this with a direct species-level synthesis before publication in the app.

Related shark pages

These links are meant to help readers continue through related species, not force extra clicks.

Porbeagle reference photograph showing the torpedo-shaped body and pointed snout; not to scale.
Lamna nasus

Porbeagle

Common name: Atlantic mackerel shark

Shark species in Lamnidae.

3.5 m max
Megamouth shark specimen photograph showing the broad mouth and soft-bodied profile; not to scale.
Megachasma pelagios

big mouth shark

Common name: Megamouth shark

Shark species in Megachasmidae.

7.1 m max