Finetooth Shark
Finetooth Shark
Carcharhinus isodon
Also Known As
Eventooth shark, Night shark, Smoothtooth shark
Quick Facts
Length
Up to 5 feet
Lifespan
Up to 22 years
Region
New England/Mid-Atlantic,
Southeast
Teeth and lower jaw of a finetooth shark. These slender and finely pointed teeth are adapted for catching and holding small, slippery prey like fish and crustaceans. Credit: D. Ross Robertson, Smithsonian Institution
Teeth and lower jaw of a finetooth shark. These slender and finely pointed teeth are adapted for catching and holding small, slippery prey like fish and crustaceans. Credit: D. Ross Robertson, Smithsonian Institution
About the Species
Finetooth sharks are named for their small, needle-like teeth. They prey primarily on schooling fish and have been known to form schools of their own to hunt.
NOAA Fisheries manages finetooth sharks as part of the small coastal shark complex, which also includes bonnethead, Atlantic sharpnose, and blacknose sharks.
Population
The stock is not overfished.
Fishing Rate
Not subject to overfishing.
Habitat Impact
Fishing gears used to harvest finetooth sharks have minimal impacts on habitat.
Bycatch
Regulations are in place to minimize bycatch.
Population Status
Finetooth sharks in the Atlantic Ocean and Gulf of America* (formerly Gulf of Mexico) are assessed as a single stock. According to a 2007 assessment, the stock is not overfished and not subject to overfishing. Summary stock assessment information can be found on Stock SMART.
Appearance
Finetooth sharks are slim and relatively small in size. Their upper body is bluish-gray, blending into a white underside. They have a pointed snout, moderately large eyes, and long gill slits. Their pectoral fins, located on either side of their body, are small and pointed. The primary dorsal fin is small and rounded at the tip.
Biology
Female finetooth sharks grow more slowly than males and ultimately reach a larger size. In the Atlantic, the maximum observed age for males and females is about 22 years.
Finetooth shark pups are around 1.5 feet long at birth. Pups are typically born during early summer after a gestation period of about one year. There are approximately 4 pups on average per litter.
Finetooth sharks primarily feed on small bony fish such as menhaden, Spanish mackerel, and mullet. They also eat squid and crustaceans.
Where They Live
Range
In U.S. waters, finetooth sharks are mostly found south of North Carolina, including the Gulf of America and Caribbean Sea, with occasional sightings as far north as New York. They are also present off the coast of southern Brazil.
Off the East Coast, adults and juveniles follow a seasonal migration, spending the warmer summer months off the Carolinas before migrating south as surface water temperatures fall.
Habitat
Finetooth sharks live close to shore in depths of around 30 feet. They are commonly found in bays, lagoons, and estuaries.
Fishery Management
NOAA Fisheries manages finetooth sharks in federal waters under the Consolidated Atlantic Highly Migratory Species (HMS) Fishery Management Plan. Commercial, recreational, and for-hire fishermen must comply with permit requirements, trip limits, gear restrictions, finning prohibitions, closed areas, and reporting requirements to land finetooth sharks.
Finetooth sharks can only be sold to federally permitted shark dealers. Shark dealers are required to attend Atlantic shark identification workshops to help them better identify shark species.
*Executive Order 14172, “Restoring Names That Honor American Greatness” (Jan. 20, 2025), directs that the Gulf of Mexico be renamed the Gulf of America. Gulf of America references in this website refer to the same area as the Gulf of Mexico in the applicable regulations under 50 CFR parts 216–219, 222–226, and 600–699. The name change did not result in any changes to, and had no effect on the applicability or enforceability of, any existing regulations. This website continues to use “Gulf of Mexico” when quoting statutes, existing regulations, or previously published materials.
Scientific Classification
In U.S. waters, finetooth sharks are mostly found south of North Carolina, including the Gulf of America and Caribbean Sea, with occasional sightings as far north as New York. They are also present off the coast of southern Brazil.
Off the East Coast, adults and juveniles follow a seasonal migration, spending the warmer summer months off the Carolinas before migrating south as surface water temperatures fall.
Finetooth sharks live close to shore in depths of around 30 feet. They are commonly found in bays, lagoons, and estuaries.
Fishery Management
NOAA Fisheries manages finetooth sharks in federal waters under the Consolidated Atlantic Highly Migratory Species (HMS) Fishery Management Plan. Commercial, recreational, and for-hire fishermen must comply with permit requirements, trip limits, gear restrictions, finning prohibitions, closed areas, and reporting requirements to land finetooth sharks.
Finetooth sharks can only be sold to federally permitted shark dealers. Shark dealers are required to attend Atlantic shark identification workshops to help them better identify shark species.
*Executive Order 14172, “Restoring Names That Honor American Greatness” (Jan. 20, 2025), directs that the Gulf of Mexico be renamed the Gulf of America. Gulf of America references in this website refer to the same area as the Gulf of Mexico in the applicable regulations under 50 CFR parts 216–219, 222–226, and 600–699. The name change did not result in any changes to, and had no effect on the applicability or enforceability of, any existing regulations. This website continues to use “Gulf of Mexico” when quoting statutes, existing regulations, or previously published materials.
Scientific Classification
| Kingdom | Animalia | Phylum | Chordata | Class | Chondrichthyes | Order | Carcharhiniformes | Family | Carcharhinidae | Genus | Carcharhinus | Species | isodon |
|---|
Featured News
Blacktip sharks. Credit: iStock.
Releasing a sandbar shark on a shark survey.
Related Species
Seafood Facts
Is Finetooth Shark Sustainable?
U.S. wild-caught finetooth shark is a smart seafood choice because it is sustainably managed and responsibly harvested under U.S. regulations.
Availability
Year-round.
Source
U.S. wild-caught from North Carolina through Texas.
Taste
Sweet, meaty taste.
Texture
Thick, large flakes and moist flesh.
Color
Raw meat is white to tan with a pink blood line.
Health Benefits
Shark is a low-fat source of protein and is high in selenium and vitamins B6 and B12.
Nutrition Facts
Servings: 1; Serving Weight: 100 g (raw); Calories: 130; Protein: 20.98 g; Total Fat: 4.51 g; Total Saturated Fatty Acids: 0.925 g; Carbohydrate: 0 g; Total Sugars: 0 g; Total Dietary Fiber: 0 g; Cholesterol: 51 mg; Selenium: 36.5 mcg; Sodium: 79 mgSeafood News
(Overlay) L: Goliath grouper circa 1945. Credit: Wally Ericson. R: Shrimp fishing in Galveston, Texas. Date unknown. Credit: NOAA Library/NOAA Fisheries Archives/Bob Brigham; (Background): Boats in harbor. Credit: Mississippi Alabama Sea Grant
Fishing boats at sunset in an Alaska harbor. Credit: NOAA Fisheries/Kalei Shotwell
Leadership Message
Reducing Burdens on Domestic Fishing and Increasing Production
Alaska
New England/Mid-Atlantic
Pacific Islands
Southeast
West Coast
National
Credit: NOAA Fisheries/Shutterstock
Feature Story
Celebrate National Culinary Arts Month
Alaska
New England/Mid-Atlantic
Pacific Islands
Southeast
West Coast
National
Grilled teriyaki swordfish over seaweed salad, served at NOAA's 2026 Great American Fish Festival by Viking Village out of New Jersey. Credit: NOAA
Feature Story
Fire Up the Grill and Celebrate Culinary Arts Month!
Alaska
New England/Mid-Atlantic
Pacific Islands
Southeast
West Coast
National
Management Overview
NOAA Fisheries manages finetooth sharks in federal waters of the Atlantic Ocean, including the Gulf of America* (formerly Gulf of Mexico) and Caribbean Sea, under the Consolidated Atlantic Highly Migratory Species (HMS) Management Plan. Individual states have their own rules and regulations for fishing in state waters, which extend to 3 miles from shore in the Atlantic and 9 miles from the shore in the Gulf of America.
Commercial Fishery
We manage finetooth sharks as part of the small coastal shark complex. For commercial fishing, we’ve established combined annual quotas and catch limits for finetooth, bonnethead, and Atlantic sharpnose sharks. This group is known in the regulations as “non-blacknose small coastal sharks,” and they are managed as two regional groups—Atlantic and Gulf of America.
The commercial annual non-blacknose small coastal shark quota in the Atlantic region is 264.1 metric tons (mt), dressed weight (dw). In the Gulf of America region, the quota is 112.6 mt dw.
The fishing season typically runs from January 1 through December 31. When commercial landings reach 80 percent of a regional quota and we expect landings to reach 100 percent of the regional quota by the end of the fishing season, the fishery is closed for the year.
The commercial Atlantic non-blacknose small coastal shark quota is linked to the Atlantic quota for blacknose sharks. If the landings for either group reach 80 percent of their regional quota, both commercial fisheries in the region are closed.
Read more about commercial fishing rules
Recreational Fishery
The recreational finetooth shark fishery is managed with retention limits. We do not open or close the fishery based on a quota.
Read more about recreational fishing rules
Regulatory History
- 2023: NOAA Fisheries releases a review of the state of the Atlantic shark fishery that may be used to help develop future management measures and later releases an issues and options paper as a first step in reconsidering the appropriate management measures in the shark fishery.
- 2015: NOAA Fisheries adjusts the non-blacknose small coastal shark quotas and modifies the quota linkages between small coastal shark fisheries.
- 2013: NOAA Fisheries restructures the non-blacknose small coastal shark quota into regional quotas—Atlantic and Gulf of America—and establishes quota linkages between management groups whose species are often caught together.
- 2010: NOAA Fisheries establishes new small coastal shark complexes and quotas, and links the blacknose and non-blacknose small coastal shark fisheries.
- 2008: NOAA Fisheries requires all shark fins remain naturally attached to the shark carcass through landing and establishes commercial trip limits for Shark Directed and Shark Incidental permit holders.
- 2007: A stock assessment supports a determination that finetooth sharks are not overfished or subject to overfishing.
- 2006: NOAA Fisheries releases the Consolidated Atlantic Highly Migratory Species (HMS) Fishery Management Plan to manage all HMS fisheries.
- 2001: NOAA Fisheries releases the United States National Plan of Action for the Conservation and Management of Sharks (PDF, 90 pages).
- 1999: NOAA Fisheries consolidates the management of Atlantic tunas, swordfish, and sharks under a single fishery management plan.
- 1997: NOAA Fisheries establishes a commercial quota for small coastal sharks and reduces the recreational trip limit for most shark species.
- 1993: NOAA Fisheries implements the first Fishery Management Plan for Sharks of the Atlantic Ocean. The plan includes a prohibition on shark finning.
- 1990: President George H.W. Bush signs the Fishery Conservation Amendments of 1990, which gives the Secretary of Commerce the authority to manage Atlantic highly migratory species, including sharks. The Secretary delegates this authority to NOAA Fisheries through the Highly Migratory Species Management Division.
- 1989: Fishery management councils ask the Secretary of Commerce to develop a shark fishery management plan that caps commercial fishing effort, establishes a recreational bag limit, prohibits shark finning, and establishes a data collection system.
- 1976: Congress passes the Fishery Conservation and Management Act. Under the act, Atlantic sharks are managed by regional fishery management councils.
Atlantic Shark Fisheries Management Highlights: A Timeline
*Executive Order 14172, “Restoring Names That Honor American Greatness” (Jan. 20, 2025), directs that the Gulf of Mexico be renamed the Gulf of America. Gulf of America references in this website refer to the same area as the Gulf of Mexico in the applicable regulations under 50 CFR parts 216–219, 222–226, and 600–699. The name change did not result in any changes to, and had no effect on the applicability or enforceability of, any existing regulations. This website continues to use “Gulf of Mexico” when quoting statutes, existing regulations, or previously published materials.
Science Overview
NOAA Fisheries conducts shark research from New England and the Mid-Atlantic to the South Atlantic and Gulf of America (formerly Gulf of Mexico), studying life history and performing long-term monitoring activities essential for stock assessment and management.
Tagging and Tracking Finetooth Sharks
NOAA Fisheries runs the Cooperative Shark Tagging Program to study the life history of finetooth sharks and other shark species. Started in 1962, the program involves thousands of recreational and commercial fishermen, scientists, and fisheries observers. Participants tag large and small coastal sharks, as well as pelagic sharks, and record information such as the date and location of capture, the gear used, and the shark's size and sex.
Shark Pupping and Nursery Surveys
We manage several surveys along the East Coast and in the Gulf of America focused on shark nursery habitats in estuaries and nearshore water. The goals of these programs are to identify shark nursery habitat and determine and monitor species composition, habitat use, abundance, and distribution of sharks while they are present in these critical habitats.
The Cooperative Atlantic States Shark Pupping and Nursery Surveys are five annual surveys conducted from Delaware to Florida by federal agencies, state agencies and universities. The COASTSPAN program is overseen by the Northeast Fisheries Science Center.
More information about the COASTSPAN program
The Southeast Fisheries Science Center oversees the Gulf States Shark Pupping and Nursery Area project, also known as GULFSPAN. The project is made up of four annual surveys conducted from Florida to Mississippi.
