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Triaenodon obesus

Mangō Maru

Whitetip Reef-Shark

Multimedia & Additional Resources

Type	Description	Download
Image:	Adult - anterior only	48KB
Image:	Adult	31KB
Image:	Adult	20KB
Video:	on Rarotonga (© Karl Traylor)	403KB

General Information

COMMON NAMES: Whitetip Reef-Shark, Reef Whitetip Shark, Blunt-head Shark; German Weissspitzen-Riffhai; French Requin Requin Blanc du Lagon, Requin Corail

TRADITIONAL NAMES: Mangō Maru (RR MK AK), Mangō (MG MT), Mangō Kōvari (AT), Ngarara (PL), Malu (TS PK), Maru (TW MH); Other Polynesian - Mao Mamaru (TAH), Torire (TUA), Peata (MQA)

GLOBAL DISTRIBUTION: NATIVE ? - Cooks - Fr.Poly., Hawai‘i

COOK ISLANDS STATUS: Native; Common S.Group and common N.Group. PLUS: Mild disposition.; Marine, near-shore, outer reef-slope, atoll lagoons

SIGNIFICANCE LIST: ; Injurous bite - serious

KEY FEATURES: To 1.7m TL.(RM91) [ 2.1cm - GBR]

Cook Islands Distribution

View Distribution Map

Southern Group: Present Makatea:
RR	MG	AT	MK	MT	AK	PL	TK	MN
++?	++	+++	++		++	+++

Northern Group: Present
TN	MH	RK	PK	NS	SW
+			P		++

Key to Symbols

blank	no data
-	absent	L	localised
X	extinct 'naturally'	W	widespread
XQi	quarantine intercepted	R	recent
XQe	eradicated	?	query preceding category
P	present	T?	taxonomic query
S	seasonal	nn	present, said to have no name
O	occasional	?1	present, name not investigated
++++	very common	?2	presence not verified, no name recorded
+++	common	N/A	absent, name not expected
++	uncommon
+	rare
Cook Islands islands: RR =Rarotonga, MG = Mangaia, AT =‘Ātiu, MK=Ma‘uke, MT=Miti‘āro, AK=Aitutaki, PL=Palmerston, PN=Penrhyn, MN=Manuae, TK=Takūtea, TN=Tongareva (TS=Tongaleva Spoken, TW=Tongareva Written, they say "el" but write "r"), MH=Manihiki, RK=Rakahanga, PK=Pukapuka, NS=Nassau, SW=Suwarrow. After a Polynesian name: ^=orthography query. Countries and other: FIJ=Fiji, WT=Wallis & Futuna, SAM=Samoa, TON=Tonga, NIU=Niue, CK=Cook Islands, CKM=Cook Islands Māori, FP=French Polynesia, AUS=Australs, SOC=Societies, TAH=Tahiti, TUA=Tuamotus, MQS=Marquesas, MNG=Mangareva, PIT=Pitcain group, EAS=Easter Island, HAW=Hawai‘i, NZ=New Zealand, NZM=New Zealand Māori

Scientific Taxonomy

Triaenodon obesus (Rüppell, 1837)
SYNONYMS: Carcharias obesus [O]

TAXONOMY: ANIMALIA; CHORDATA; GNATHOSTOMATA (Jawed Vertebrates); PISCES; CHONDRICHTHYES; Carcharhiniformes; CARCHARHINIDAE. COMMENT: Some authors put this shark into the family HEMIGALEIDAE, the Weasal Sharks.

Vouchers & References

Vouchers:
Cooks: "common in both groups" (Sims88). Palmerston: Photo01 (G&S85). Tongareva: listed in T&P85. Pukapuka: informant reports at NBSAP meeting, 2/2004. Suwarrow: (Sims EIA99).

References:
text p.32 Myers (1991 2nd Ed.) Fishes of Micronesia
plate 7c Myers (1991 2nd Ed.) Fishes of Micronesia
p.22 Randall et al. (1990) Fishes of the Great Barrier Reef....
p.40 Burgess et al. (1988) Atlas of Marine Aquarium Fishes (TFH)
plate 3-03 Lieske & Myers (1996) Coral Reef Fishes
plate 3-05 Allen (1997) Marine Fishes of Tropical Australia....
Species No. p011 Munro (1967) Fishes of New Guinea

Data Update History (information):
zTX, zB02, zM02, zD02

Web Resources

Citation Information

McCormack, Gerald (2007) Cook Islands Biodiversity Database, Version 2007.2. Cook Islands Natural Heritage Trust, Rarotonga. Online at http://cookislands.bishopmuseum.org.
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