DiscoverSpeciesSharks and rays
Cat shark
Parascyllium variolatum
- Usual depth5–85 m
- Water temperature14–22 °C
- Best monthsJanuary, June, and July
- How commonRare
Photo credit: (c) ttsquid, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY · iNaturalist
About this species
The necklace carpetshark, also known as the varied carpetshark, is a carpetshark of the family Parascylliidae endemic to the waters off Australia's southern coast between latitudes 37°S and 41°S. It is found near the ocean floor over sand, rock, coral reefs, and kelp and seagrass beds at depths down to 180 m (590 ft). It is almost exclusively seen at night and spends the day hidden in caves or camouflaged on the ocean floor.
Text from the Wikipedia article “Necklace carpetshark”, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Read the article
Where and when
Where it has been recorded
Worldwide
Loading the map
Best months
Worldwide (open data)
- January: 32 records
- February: 25 records
- March: 31 records
- April: 27 records
- May: 28 records
- June: 37 records
- July: 34 records
- August: 13 records
- September: 5 records
- October: 16 records
- November: 22 records
- December: 15 records
Depth and water temperature
Depth
Mostly recorded at 5–85 m · Deepest record: 120 m
Water temperature
Recorded in surface water of 14–22 °C
Photos
(c) Josh Nitschke, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY · iNaturalist 
(c) Peter Crowcroft, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY · iNaturalist 
(c) bukoba_steve, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY · iNaturalist
Names and classification
- English
- Cat shark, Necklace carpet shark, Southern catshark, Southern collared cat shark, Varied carpet shark, Varied catshark, cat shark, necklace carpet shark, necklace carpetshark, Ring-necked Catshark, southern catshark, southern collared cat shark, varied carpet shark, Varied Carpetshark, varied catshark
Names in 4 more languages
- German
- Bunter Halsbandhai, Halsband-Teppichhai
- Spanish
- alfombrera colarina
- French
- hémiscylle tacheté, requin-carpette à collier, Requin carpette à collier
- Japanese
- ネックレスクラカケザメ
Other scientific names: Hemiscyllium variolatum, Parascyllium nuchalis
Similar species
Cat sharkParascyllium ferrugineum
- Cat shark
Parascyllium collare
- Ginger Carpetshark
Parascyllium sparsimaculatum
Taiwan saddled carpet sharkCirrhoscyllium formosanum
Saddled carpet sharkCirrhoscyllium japonicum
- Barbelthroat carpet shark
Cirrhoscyllium expolitum
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).
- 260 open-data records from 1880 to 2024.
- Species data updated November 5, 2026.
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