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Japanese catshark

species of fish

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Record originEnglish Wikipedia
Text licenseCC BY-SA 4.0
Source revisionMay 21, 2026
Entity authorityQ2248971
Source-derived summary

The Japanese catshark (Apristurus japonicus) is a shark of the family Pentanchidae, the deepwater catsharks, found in the northwest Pacific off Chiba Prefecture, Honshū, Japan, between 36 and 34°N.

This shark has a relatively slender body, with the trunk tapering towards the head. Its snout is moderately long, bell-shaped, and broad; the preoral snout is about 7% to 8% of its total length. It has large gill slits, rather small eyes in adults, nostrils fairly broad, and a long broad, arched mouth. It is commonly taken by trawl off the type locality, and possibly used for oil, human consumption, and fishmeal or fish cakes locally.

References

Froese, Rainer; Pauly, Daniel (eds.). "Apristurus japonicus". FishBase. July 2006 version.

Editorial summary

Begin with the source’s own compact description: “Japanese catshark” is species of fish. The dossier treats that line as a proposition to test through Japanese, catshark and species, not as a finished interpretation.

Editorial reviewA practical orientation to terminology and classification, particularly when read beside dated observations, specimens or technical literature. The current lead gives the account dated anchors—2006—that can be checked directly. The selected authority fields contribute no independent date. For this dossier, Japanese, catshark and species is the immediate research focus.
Editorial analysis

Why this record matters

The phrase “species of fish” supplies a clear boundary for inquiry. It also exposes the unanswered questions: who defined that boundary, when it became stable and which sources sit outside it.

Evidence profile

The date and method of observation matter as much as the stated conclusion, especially where classification or consensus has changed. The source revision retrieved here is dated May 21, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q2248971. None of the 0 selected statements returned an explicit reference. The first chronological checks are 2006.

Critical limits

A general summary may omit uncertainty, sample limits or methodological disagreement that is explicit in the technical record. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.

How to read it

Check terminology, classification and the date of the cited evidence. Scientific names and technical consensus can change while older records retain historical value.

Best used for
  • Current terminology
  • Classification context
  • Finding cited technical literature
Verify next

Primary datasets, specimen catalogues, standards bodies and the most recent peer-reviewed literature.

Three-step research path

  1. Establish the record: confirm the title “Japanese catshark”, its source revision and the description used here.
  2. Expand the search: follow Japanese catshark primary sources, Japanese catshark archive and Japanese research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
  3. Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.

Questions for further research

  1. Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Japanese catshark”?
  2. Is the terminology current, historical or disputed?
  3. Which observation, specimen, dataset or publication supports the account?
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Source & attribution

This entry incorporates text from Japanese catshark” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.