Species Profile No. 32: The Sand Devil (Squatina dumeril) The sand devil is a species of angel shark - pretty contradictory name, I know! This species is also known as the Atlantic Angelshark. They live on the east coast of North America. They’re a bottom-dwelling species, living close to the shore during the spring and summer, but live in much deeper waters during the fall and winter. They catch their prey by settling into sand or mud and ambushing their food! The sand devil is globally listed as Least Concern by the IUCN. Females give birth once every two years upon reaching maturity, with a gestation period of 12 months and litters that contain 4-25 pups. While a whole year is a long time to be pregnant, these sharks have a generation length of 8.25 years - which is short for a shark! We’ll be able to see how this compares to some of the more threatened angel sharks as we cover more species later on. Sand devils are sometimes caught as bycatch, but the areas that they inhabit currently aren’t targeted by shrimp trawling fisheries. However, as fisheries expand, sand devils could find themselves at risk due to higher rates of bycatch. The IUCN states that this species is vulnerable to overexploitation. Let’s hope that this species can remain safe from fisheries well into the future! To keep the sand devil safe, make sure to support @angelsharkproject, the Angel Shark Conservation Network, Shark Advocates International, and the IUCN Shark Specialist Group. ••••••••••••••••••••••••• #angelsharkprofiles #shark #sharks #angelshark #sanddevil #sanddevilshark #atlanticangelshark #diversesharks #sharkeducation #savesharks #savethesharks #helpsavesharks #bycatch #overfishing #stopoverfishing #replacefearwithfacts #stopsharkfinning https://www.instagram.com/p/B0EGUHYBUU5/?igshid=1gtslfwlti3d9
