The short-tail nurse shark, Pseudoginglymostoma brevicaudatum, is a nurse shark in the family Ginglymostomatidae, the only member of the genus Pseudoginglymostoma. It is found in the tropical western Indian Ocean between latitudes 0° S and 27° S, and reaches a length of 75 cm.
Entire body is dark brown. No conspicuous markings.
Compared to other "nurse sharks", it is very small, maximum size about 75 cm, average between 50 and 70 cm.
Feeds most likely on molluscs.
Similar to Tawny nurse shark , which however is of much larger size, its pectoral fins are falcate, and dorsal fins pointed.
The short-tail nurse shark is a little-known inshore bottom shark of the continental and insular shelves. It is well adapted to lie amongst coral reefs due to its tough skin. Its breeding and feeding habits are largely unknown, but it was assumed to be ovoviviparous. However, Artis has successfully bred 4 short-tail nurse sharks in 2007, which hatched from eggs laid by a shark from Sea Life Center Helsinki, showing the shark is oviparous. It survives for many hours out of water.


Not to be confused with grey nurse shark.
The nurse shark, Ginglymostoma cirratum, is a shark in the nurse sharks family, the only member of its genus Ginglymostoma. Nurse sharks can reach a length of 4.3 m (14 ft) and a weight of 330 lbs (150 kg).[2] Nurse sharks are so-called because their method of feeding on prey larger than their mouths is to bite down and slowly suck the prey's flesh down their throats.

The nurse shark family name, Ginglymostomatidae, derives from the Greek: from γίγγλυμος meaning hinge and στῶμα meaning mouth. Cirratum also derives from Greek, meaning curl.

he nurse shark is a common inshore bottom-dwelling shark, found in tropical and subtropical waters on the continental and insular shelves. It is frequently found at depths of one meter or less but may occur down to 12 m. Its common habitats are reefs, channels between mangrove islands and sand flats. It occurs in the Western Atlantic from Rhode Island down to southern Brazil; in the Eastern Atlantic from Cameroon to Gabon (and possibly ranges further north and south); in the Eastern Pacific from the southern Baja California to Peru; and around the islands of the Caribbean.

Nurse sharks are nocturnal animals, spending the day in large inactive groups of up to 40 individuals. Hidden under submerged ledges or in crevices within the reef, the nurse sharks seem to prefer specific resting sites and will return to them each day after the night's hunting. By night, the sharks are largely solitary; they spend most of their time rifling through the bottom sediments in search of food. Their diet consists primarily of crustaceans, molluscs, tunicates, sea snakes, and other fish, particularly stingrays.

Their diet consists of a large number of marine invertebrates - spiny lobsters, crabs, shrimp, sea urchins, octopuses, squid, and marine snails and bivalves.

They are thought to take advantage of dormant fish which would otherwise be too fast for the sharks to catch; although their small mouths limit the size of prey items, the sharks have large throat cavities which are used as a sort of bellows valve. In this way nurse sharks are able to suck in their prey. Nurse sharks are also known to graze algae and coral.

Nurse sharks have been observed resting on the bottom with their bodies supported on their fins, possibly providing a false shelter for crustaceans which they then ambush and eat

The mating season runs from late June to the end of July. Nurse sharks are ovoviviparous, meaning the eggs develop and hatch within the body of the female where the hatchlings develop further until live birth occurs. The gestation period is six months, with a typical litter of 21 - 28 pups The mating cycle is biennial, as it takes 18 months for the female's ovaries to produce another batch of eggs, during which time, cannibalistic behavior can occur. The young nurse sharks are born fully developed at about 30 cm long in Ginglymostoma cirratum. They possess a spotted coloration which fades with age.

The nurse shark is not widely commercially fished, but because of its sluggish behaviour it is an easy target for local fisheries. Its skin is exceptionally tough and is prized for leather; its flesh consumed fresh and salted and its liver utilised for oil. It is not taken as a game fish. It has been reported in some unprovoked attacks on humans but is not generally perceived as a threat


IS THAT ENOUGH CLUE FOR YOU????????????????????????????????????

cheers buddy

Unless you had a tank that wrapped around your living room. Haha. Now that would be awesome. Like one of those tunnels in seaworld. My mother is a marine biologist but for some reason she hasn't gotten into my fish tanks much...

Me I am a grease monkey for life I finished 2 years in Auto Technology at Wenatchee Valley College, Two years of Auto Machining at Spokane Community College, and a Year of Transmission and drivetrain tech training at Spokane community.

Maybe you could work something out with your local zoo, or place that keeps sharks. You could raise them then pass em on to marineland or whatever. I dont feel they should be kept in regular tanks, even as much as 500g, especially when fully grown.

Im pretty sure my LFS raises sharks then passes them onto someone with a bigger tank once they outgrow the one at their facility.