Crested bullhead shark

Heterodontus galeatus

Sharks and rays
IUCN: Least concern

Usual depth37–145 m
Water temperature18–28 °C
Best monthsAugust, October, and November
How commonOccasional

Photo credit: (c) Thomas Mesaglio, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY · iNaturalist

About this species

The crested bullhead shark is an uncommon species of bullhead shark, in the family Heterodontidae. It lives off the coast of eastern Australia from the coast to a depth of 93 m (305 ft). This shark can be distinguished from other members of its family by the large size of the ridges above its eyes and by its color pattern of large dark blotches. It typically attains a length of 1.2 m (3.9 ft).

Text from the Wikipedia article “Crested bullhead shark”, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Read the article

Where and when

Where it has been recorded

Worldwide

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Best months

Worldwide (open data)

January: 53 records
February: 48 records
March: 60 records
April: 65 records
May: 48 records
June: 58 records
July: 66 records
August: 93 records
September: 89 records
October: 104 records
November: 101 records
December: 80 records

Depth and water temperature

Depth

Mostly recorded at 37–145 m · Deepest record: 212 m

20–30 m: 1 records
30–40 m: 5 records
40–50 m: 8 records
50–60 m: 14 records
60–70 m: 13 records
70–80 m: 3 records
80–90 m: 0 records
90–100 m: 0 records
100–110 m: 0 records
110–120 m: 0 records
120–130 m: 0 records
130+ m: 5 records

Water temperature

Recorded in surface water of 18–28 °C

16–18 °C: 1 records
18–20 °C: 29 records
20–22 °C: 84 records
22–24 °C: 35 records
24–26 °C: 0 records
26–28 °C: 1 records

Photos

(c) Thomas Mesaglio, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY · iNaturalist
(c) Valentin Moser, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY · iNaturalist
(c) Bryce Watts-Parker, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY · iNaturalist
(c) Luke Quinane, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY · iNaturalist
no rights reserved · CC0 1.0 · iNaturalist
(c) Rosie Steinberg, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY · iNaturalist
(c) Bryce Watts-Parker, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY · iNaturalist

Names and classification

English: Crested bullhead shark, Crested horn shark, Crested Port Jackson shark, Crested shark, crested bullhead shark, Crested Bull Shark, crested horn shark, Crested Hornshark, crested Port Jackson shark, crested shark

Names in 4 more languages

German: Kamm-Stierkopfhai
Spanish: dormilón carenado, Tiburón cabeza de toro crestado
French: requin dormeur à crête
Japanese: オデコネコザメ

Other scientific names: Cestracion galeatus, Heterodontis galeatus, Molochophrys galeatus

Similar species

Bullhead
Heterodontus portusjacksoni
Bull head
Heterodontus japonicus
Heterodontus marshallae
Mozambique bullhead shark
Heterodontus ramalheira
Barred bull-head shark
Heterodontus zebra

Sources and credits

Names and taxonomy: WoRMS (CC BY 4.0) and the GBIF Backbone (CC BY 4.0). Photos: iNaturalist observers, each under the licence shown (CC0, CC BY or CC BY-SA).

Depth, temperature, months and maps: records from OBIS and GBIF under CC0 or CC BY.
Descriptions: Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA, each linked to its article.
Conservation status as published by GBIF (IUCN Red List).
269 open-data records from 1901 to 2024.
Species data updated November 3, 2026.

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