Short-tail nurse shark
shark species
The short-tail nurse shark (Pseudoginglymostoma brevicaudatum) is an orectolobiform shark in the family Ginglymostomatidae, the only member of the genus Pseudoginglymostoma. It is found in the tropical western Indian Ocean between latitudes 0° and 27° S, and has a maximum recorded length of 75 cm.
Distribution
The short-tail nurse shark has been documented in the western Indian Ocean off of Tanzania, Kenya, Madagascar and in Mozambique. There have also been unconfirmed sightings in the Seychelles and Mauritius.
In 2020, a short-tail nurse shark was caught on camera in South Africa by Forrest Galante and associates in search of the whitetip weasel shark.
Feeding
The natural diet of P. brevicaudatum is unknown.
In 2024, the Clearwater Marine Aquarium, which at the time housed two short-tail nurse sharks, conducted a trial period recording on a scale of 0-5 the sharks’ preference in foods based on what food the sharks gravitated towards. The aquarium created a varied diet based on nurse shark husbandry consisting of shrimp, clams, krill, mussels and silverside. It was discovered that the sharks had a high consumption preference for krill with an average rating of 3.5, while interest varied between shrimp and clams throughout the trial period. P. brevicaudatum had the highest preference for mussels with an average rating of 4.
“Short-tail nurse shark” enters the record as shark species. Crown Archives preserves that source wording while asking what Short-tail, nurse and shark can confirm, complicate or overturn.
Why this record matters
“Short-tail nurse shark” is worth following because a concise public description often conceals a longer documentary argument. Here, Short-tail, nurse and shark provides the most credible route into that argument.
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 Jul 26, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q29117. None of the 0 selected statements returned an explicit reference. The first chronological checks are 2020 and 2024.
Current terminology should not be projected backward without checking the classification used when the underlying evidence was created. 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.
- Current terminology
- Classification context
- Finding cited technical literature
Primary datasets, specimen catalogues, standards bodies and the most recent peer-reviewed literature.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Short-tail nurse shark”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Short-tail nurse shark primary sources, Short-tail nurse shark archive and Short-tail research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Short-tail nurse shark”?
- Which observation, specimen, dataset or publication supports the account?
- Has classification or technical consensus changed since the cited source?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Short-tail nurse shark” 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.