Eric Otten:

Of course, they can’t be missing from the catalog of fish illustrations: the sharks of the North Sea! While I have now illustrated almost all the bony fish found in German waters, the cartilaginous fish were largely uncharted territory for me.

The two most common sharks in our coastal waters are the Tope Shark Galeorhinus galeus and the Small-Spotted Catshark Scyliorhinus canicula.

The Tope Shark, reaching a maximum length of up to 1.95 meters, is one of the largest fish in Germany and is found almost worldwide. It can be spotted from Norway to New Zealand, Canada, South America, parts of Africa, and even Hawaii. In our region of europe, it is especially common along the Dutch coast, where it can often be observed or caught from shore.

Beachgoers often come across the Small-Spotted Catshark in the form of its distinctive egg cases. These large capsules detach from the substrate particularly during storm surges and are washed ashore. In fact, the Catshark is the most common shark species in our coastal waters. It is found throughout most parts of the Atlantic, from Norway to West Africa, and typically inhabits depths between 10 and 100 meters, where it searches the seafloor for invertebrates or small fish. Small-Spotted Catsharks are mostly nocturnal, which is likely why they are rarely encountered by swimmers or beach visitors.