Chiloscyllium punctatum
Silhouette: PhyloPic
In 3 days ~70% in a week >90%
The brownbanded bamboo shark (Chiloscyllium punctatum), is a bamboo shark in the family Hemiscylliidae that can be found in the Indo-West Pacific from Japan to northern Australia, between latitudes 34° N and 26° S. It is regularly bred in public aquaria, and is arguably one of the sharks most suited to captivity due to its docile disposition, sedentary nature, and relatively small size. In public aquariums, these fish can live up to 25 years.
These sharks can be distinguished by their concave posterior margined dorsal fin. No color patterns are present for the adults, however, the juveniles have dark transverse bands with some dark spots. It can grow up to 1.04 metres (41 in).
It is a nocturnal animal and can survive out of the water for up to 12 hrs. They have barbels that resemble feline whiskers, hence the common name "cat shark". Despite this moniker, they are not true members of the catshark family, and are more closely related to the nurse sharks, wobbegongs, epaulette sharks and whale sharks, belonging to the order Orectolobiformes.
These sharks live around coral reefs and tide pools. It resides at depths down to 85 metres (279 ft). Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Komodo National Park | 🇮🇩 Indonesia | |
| 2 | Raja Ampat | 🇮🇩 Indonesia |
Likely
About 40% of wildlife watchers report a catshark sighting in Raja Ampat on a given day, based on 19 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 9th most-seen of the 12 sharks and rays we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 70%, and over a week to over 90%, if each day is a fresh chance.
September and December
In those months about 70% of wildlife watchers report a catshark in Raja Ampat on a given day, against under 5% in May, the lowest month.
Between 8 and 11 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most catshark sightings with a recorded time, and about 8 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Among the best
Of the 2 parks where we can rate catshark sightings, Raja Ampat ranks 2nd at about 40%, level with the leaders once rounded. The best odds are in Komodo National Park (Indonesia, about 40%).
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the catshark is recorded against all the sharks and rays logged in Raja Ampat (19 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
