List of marine vertebrates of the Cape Peninsula and False Bay

The list of marine vertebrates of the Cape Peninsula and False Bay is a list of marine and shore-based vertebrate animal species that form a part of the fauna of South Africa and that have been recorded from this geographical range. In some cases they are an important part of the local ecological community, and others may have been passing through, or were carried out of their natural ranges by the vagaries of ocean currents or winds. Some of the animals are deep within their range of endemism, or near its borders, while others are cosmopolitan or recently arrived aliens. This list includes animals which live entirely marine lives, or which spend critical parts of their lives at sea, or rely on the sea or intertidal shore for the major part of their diet.

The geographical range is from Bloubergstrand at the north of Table Bay to Cape Hangklip, the south eastern limit of False Bay, in the Western Cape province of South Africa and includes the Table Mountain National Park Marine Protected Area (TMNP MPA), the Helderberg Marine Protected Area, and part of the Robben Island Marine Protected Area.

Most of the shore is within the City of Cape Town, except for a section of the east coast of False Bay, south of Kogel Bay, which is in the Overstrand Local Municipality

The region is near to several universities and research institutions in Cape Town and Stellenbosch, which has led to many studies of the organisms and of the marine ecology, particularly those organisms that are easily or incidentally collected. The popularity of these waters for recreational diving has led to an increase in reported underwater photographic observations in recent years.

Fishes

Agnatha – jawless fishes (cyclostomes)

Order Myxiniformes – hagfishes Family: Myxinidae Sixgill hagfish or snotslang, Eptatretus hexatrema (Müller, 1834) (Walvis Bay to Durban) Fivegill hagfish, Eptatretus profundus Barnard, 1923 (off Cape Point) Cape hagfish, Myxine capensis Regan, 1913 (Cape of Good Hope)

Gnathostomata – jawed fishes

Chondrichthyes – cartilaginous fishes

Elasmobranchii – sharks and rays Order Myliobatiformes – stingrays Family Myliobatidae – eagle rays Manta, Manta birostris (Donndorff, 1798) (possibly circumtropical, from the Cape eastwards) Eagle ray, Myliobatis aquila (Linnaeus, 1758) (Namibia to KwaZulu-Natal) Bull ray, Aetomylaeus bovinus (Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, 1817), also recorded as syn. Pteromylaeus bovinus (Saint-Hilaire, 1817) (south-western Cape to Zanzibar)

Order Rajiformes – rays, skates and guitarfish Family Dasyatidae – stingrays Short-tail stingray, Bathytoshia brevicaudata (Hutton, 1875) recorded as syn. Dasyatis brevicaudata (Hutton, 1875) (False Bay to Delagoa Bay) Thorntail stingray,Bathytoshia lata (Garman, 1880), recorded as syn. Dasyatis thetidis Ogilby, 1899, (TMNP MPA). Blue stingray, Dasyatis chrysonota (Smith, 1828) (Central Angola to Delagoa Bay) also recorded as Dasyatis marmorata (Steindachner, 1892) Diamond ray, butterfly ray, Gymnura natalensis (Gilchrist & Thompson, 1911), (TMNP MPA). Whiptail stingrays, Dasyatis spp. (TMNP MPA).

Family Rajidae – skates Bathyraja smithii (Müller & Henle, 1841) (Agulhas bank and west of Cape Town) Cruriraja durbanensis (von Bonde and Swart, 1923) (off Western Cape province) Cruriraja parcomaculata von Bonde and Swart, 1923 (Lüderitz to Durban) Slimeskate, Dipturus pullopunctatus (Smith, 1964) recorded as syn. Raja pullopunctata Smith, 1964 (Lüderitz to Mozambique) African dwarf skate, Neoraja stehmanni (Hulley, 1972) (west of Cape Town to south of Agulhas Bank) Munchkin skate, Rajella caudispinosa (von Bonde and Swart, 1923), recorded as syn.Raja caudaspinosa von Bonde and Swart, 1923 (Lüderitz to Cape Point) Thornback skate, Raja clavata Linnaeus, 1758 (Walvis Bay to Durban) Twineye skate, brown ray, Raja miraletus Linnaeus, 1758 (False Bay to Durban) Smoothback skate, Rajella ravidula (Hulley, 1970), recorded as syn. Raja ravidula Hulley, 1970 (off Cape Town) Amblyraja hyperborea (Collett, 1879) recorded as syn. Raja robertsi Hulley, 1970 (west of Cape Town) Malacoraja spinacidermis (Barnard, 1923) recorded as syn. Raja spinacidermis Barnard, 1923 (off west coast) Thornback skate, Raja clavata Linnaeus, 1758, (TMNP MPA). Twineye skate, brown ray, Raja miraletus Linnaeus, 1758, (TMNP MPA). Biscuit skate or false thornback skate, spotted skate, Raja straeleni Poll, 1951 (West Africa to East London) Blancmange skate, Leucoraja wallacei (Hulley, 1970) recorded as syn.Raja wallacei Hulley, 1970 (Cape to Limpopo river mouth) Bigthorn skate, Rajella barnardi (Norman, 1935), recorded as syn. Raja confundens Hulley, 1970 (West coast from 19°S to east of Cape Point) Ghost skate, Rajella dissimilis (Hulley, 1970) recorded as syn. Raja dissimilis Hulley, 1970 (west of Cape Town) Leopard skate, Rajella leoparda (von Bonde & Swart, 1923), recorded as syn. Raja leopardus von Bonde and Swart, 1923 (west coast from 18°S to 35°S) Spearnose skate, bottlenose skate, Rostroraja alba (Lacepède, 1803) (West Africa to Madagascar) (syn. Raja alba or Raia alba Lacepède, 1803)

Family Rhinobatidae – guitarfish Lesser sandshark or lesser guitarfish, Acroteriobatus annulatus (Müller & Henle, 1841), recorded as syn. Rhinobatos annulatus Smith in Müller & Henle, 1841 (Cape Columbine to Mozambique) Bluntnose guitarfish, Rhinobatos blochii Müller & Henle, 1841 (Cape to Walvis Bay)

Order Torpediniformes – electric rays Family Narkidae Onefin electric ray, Cape sleeper ray, or torpedo ray, Narke capensis (Gmelin, 1789) (Atlantic coast of Cape Peninsula to Madagascar)

Family Torpedinidae Blackspotted electric ray, blackspotted torpedo Torpedo fuscomaculata Peters, 1855 (Cape Columbine to Mozambique) Marbled torpedo, Marbled electric ray, Torpedo marmorata Risso, 1810, (TMNP MPA). Atlantic electric ray, Atlantic torpedo, Torpedo nobiliana Bonaparte, 1835 (Western Cape coast to Algoa Bay) Torpedo spp.

Order Carcharhiniformes – ground sharks Family Carcharhinidae – requiem sharks Copper shark, Carcharhinus brachyurus (Günther, 1870) (Namibia to Durban) Spinner shark, Carcharhinus brevipinna (Müller & Henle, 1839), (TMNP MPA). Blacktip shark, Carcharhinus limbatus (Müller & Henle, 1839), (TMNP MPA). Dusky shark, Carcharhinus obscurus (Lesueur, 1818) (Cape Point to Mozambique) Sandbar shark, Carcharhinus plumbeus (Nardo, 1827), (TMNP MPA). Blue shark, Prionace glauca (Linnaeus, 1758) (off south-western Cape coast)

Family Scyliorhinidae – catsharks Smalleye catshark, Apristurus microps (Gilchrist, 1922) (Western Cape to Agulhas) Saldanha catshark, Apristurus saldanha (Barnard 1925) (Saldanha Bay) Tiger catshark, Halaelurus natalensis (Regan, 1904) (Saldanha Bay to Algoa Bay) Puffadder shyshark or happy eddie, Haploblepharus edwardsii (Schinz, 1822) (Cape Point to central KwaZulu-Natal) Dark shyshark, dusky shyshark or skaamoog, Haploblepharus pictus (Müller & Henle, 1838) (Namibia to Cape Agulhas) Izak catshark, Holohalaelurus regani (Gilchrist, 1922) (south-western Cape to Zanzibar) Pyjama catshark, pyjama shark, or striped catshark, Poroderma africanum (Gmelin, 1789) (Cape Columbine to central KwaZulu-Natal) Leopard catshark, Poroderma pantherinum (Müller & Henle, 1838) (Cape Columbine to Durban) Yellowspotted catshark, Scyliorhinus capensis (Smith, 1838) (south-western Cape to KwaZulu-Natal)

Family Sphyrnidae – hammerhead sharks Smooth hammerhead, Sphyrna zygaena (Linnaeus, 1758) (south Cape to southern Mozambique, occasionally on west coast. Warm temperate waters of both hemispheres)

Family Triakidae – houndsharks Soupfin shark, tope, Galeorhinus galeus (Linnaeus, 1758) (Angola to East London) Smooth-hound shark, Mustelus mustelus (Linnaeus, 1758) (Namibia to KwaZulu-Natal) Whitespotted smooth-hound, Mustelus palumbes Smith, 1957 (Walvis Bay to Algoa Bay) Spotted gully shark, Triakis megalopterus (Smith, 1839) (Walvis Bay to East London)

Order Hexanchiformes – cow and frill sharks Family Hexanchidae – cow sharks Sixgill shark, Hexanchus griseus (Bonnaterre, 1788) (All oceans) Bigeye sixgill shark, Hexanchus vitulus Springer and Waller, 1969 (Atlantic, south-west Indian Ocean) Spotted sevengill cowshark or broadnose sevengill shark, Notorynchus cepedianus (Péron, 1807) (Namibia to East London)

Order Lamniformes – mackerel sharks Family Alopiidae – thresher sharks Thintail thresher, Alopias vulpinus (Bonnaterre, 1788) (throughout SA waters, more common in southern part)

Family Cetorhinidae – basking sharks Basking shark, Cetorhinus maximus (Gunnerus, 1765) (temperate waters of all oceans, a few records from south-western Cape)

Family Lamnidae – mackerel sharks Great white shark, Carcharodon carcharias (Linnaeus, 1758) (Namibia to Mozambique) Shortfin mako shark, Isurus oxyrinchus Rafinesque, 1810 (warm temperate and tropical waters of all oceans) Porbeagle, Lamna nasus (Bonnaterre, 1788) (Temperate oceans, recorded from False Bay and possibly Knysna)

Family Mitsukurinidae – goblin sharks Goblin shark, Mitsukurina owstoni Jordan, 1898 (west of Cape Town, and off Transkei coast)

Family Odontaspididae Ragged-tooth shark or spotted ragged-tooth shark, Carcharias taurus Rafinesque, 1810 (Cape Point to Mozambique) also reported as syn. Eugomphodus taurus (Rafinesque, 1810)

Family Pseudocarchariidae – crocodile sharks Crocodile shark, Pseudocarcharias kamoharai (Matsubara, 1936) (once found near Cape Town)

Order Orectolobiformes – carpet sharks Family Rhincodontidae – whale sharks Whale shark, Rhincodon typus Smith, 1828 (type specimen from Table Bay, normally northern KwaZulu-Natal)

Order Pristiophoriformes – sawsharks Family Pristiophoridae Sixgill sawshark, Pliotrema warreni Regan, 1906 (False Bay to southern Mozambique)

Order Squaliformes – dogfish sharks Family Echinorhinidae – bramble sharks Bramble shark, Echinorhinus brucus (Bonnaterre, 1788) (Namibia to southern KwaZulu-Natal)

Family Etmopteridae Southern lantern shark, Etmopterus granulosus (Günther, 1880), (TMNP MPA).

Family Squalidae – dogfishes Centrophorus granulosus (Bloch and Schneider, 1801) (Western Cape) Leafscale gulper shark, Centrophorus squamosus Bonnaterre, 1788 (Western Cape and Algoa Bay) Centroscyllium fabricii (Reinhardt, 1825) (Western Cape) Centroscymnus crepidater (Bocage and Capello, 1864) (Western Cape) Deania calcea (Lowe, 1839) (Cape Point and Algoa Bay) Deania profundorum (Smith and Radcliffe, 1912) (West coast and KwaZulu-Natal) Deania quadrispinosa (McCulloch, 1915) (northern Namibia to southern Mozambique) Short-tail lanternshark, Etmopterus brachyurus Smith and Radcliffe, 1912 (Western Cape, KwaZulu-Natal and southern Mozambique) Etmopterus granulosus (Günther, 1880) (Cape Point) Etmopterus sp. (off south-western Cape Province, northern KwaZulu-Natal) Euprotomicroides zantedeschia Hulley and Penrith, 1966 (west of Cape Town) Euprotomicrus bispinatus (Quoy and Gaimard, 1824) (all oceans) Flatiron shark, Oxynotus centrina (Linnaeus, 1758) (Walvis Bay to Cape Town) Greenland shark, Somniosus microcephalus (Schneider, 1801) (off Cape Columbine) Spotted spiny dogfish, Spiny (Picked) dogfish Squalus acanthias Linnaeus, 1758 (south-western Cape to Port Elizabeth) Bluntnose spiny dogfish, Shortnose spurdog Squalus megalops (MacLeay, 1881) (Namibia to southern Mozambique) Longnose spiny dogfish, Squalus mitsukurii Jordan and Fowler, 1903 (Orange river to Beira) Squalus spp.

Holocephali – chimaeras

Order Chimaeriformes Family Callorhinchidae – elephantfish St Joseph shark or elephant fish, Callorhinchus capensis Duméril, 1865 (Namibia to central KwaZulu-Natal)

Family Chimaeridae – chimaeras Cape chimaera, Chimaera sp. (Lüderitz to Cape Point)

Family Rhinochimaeridae – longnose chimaeras Harriotta raleighana Goode and Bean, 1895 (off Western Cape) Rhinochimaera africana Compagno, Stehman and Ebert, 1990 (west coast off Doring Bay and Cape Columbine, Natal coast off Kosi Bay) Rhinochimaera atlantica Holt and Byrne, 1909 (Namibia to Plettenberg Bay)