Animal-World > Marine - Saltwater Fish > Sharks and Rays > Bamboo Shark

Brownbanded Bamboo SharkBrown-spotted Cat Shark, Brown-banded Catshark

Family: Hemiscylliidae

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Chiloscyllium punctatumPhoto © Animal-World: Courtesy David Brough

   The Bamboo Shark is also called the Brown-spotted Cat Shark or Brown-banded Catshark. Juveniles like the one pictured here have the bands and occasionlly spots. The adult Bamboo Shark are often plain gray or brownish in color.

     This is one shark that is successfully kept, but needs a large aquarium for room to swim in and excellent filtration! These are among the smallest of sharks at about 40 inches. Adults of the Bamboo Shark, Brown-spotted Cat Shark, or Brown-banded Catshark can be kept reasonably well in a 150 gallon or larger aquarium.

For more Information on keeping marine fish see:
Guide to a Happy, Healthy Marine Aquarium

Maintenance difficulty:      The Bamboo Shark, Brown-spotted Cat Shark, or Brown-banded Catshark gets too large for most aquariums but is otherwise easy to keep.

Maintenance:      Feed all kinds of large meaty foods like small pieces of fish, squid, shrimp, and live goldfish. Best to feed small amounts several times a day.

Habitat: Natural geographic location:      Bamboo Shark, Brown-spotted Cat Shark, or Brown-banded Catshark are found in the Indo-Pacific region, specifically, the east coast of the Indian Peninsula to northern Australia and north as far as Japan..

Foods:      See 'maintenance' above.

Social Behaviors:      Gets along with other fish as long as they are large enough not to be thought of as food!

Sex: Sexual differences:     The medial edges of the male's pelvic fins are modified to form claspers. The claspers are tubelike organs designed to deliver sperm into the female's reproductive tract. As the males grow older the claspers become more pronounced. The females do not have these.

Light: Recommended light levels:      No special requirements.

Breeding/Reproduction:      Egglayer, sometimes shark eggs are available for sale. More information on breeding can be found here: Banded Cat Shark.

Banded Catshark (Adult) Photo Courtesy: Callie Mathews

Temperature:      No special requirements.

Length/Diameter of fish:      Bamboo Shark, Brown-spotted Cat Shark, or Brown-banded Catshark adults can grow to 104 cm ( 40 inches).

Minimum Tank Length/Size:      A minimum 175 gallon aquarium is recommended.

Water Movement: Weak, Moderate, Strong      No special requirements.

Water Region: Top, Middle, Bottom      Usually found resting on the bottom.

Availability:      This fish is available from time to time.

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Latest Comments
Where can you buy these bamboo shark eggs? online? connor 2009-04-26
Well, I just bought an bamboo shark egg about two days ago. I am waiting for it to hatch. I presently have a 90 gallon tank with about 60 lbs of rock and a few corals, but in about a week I am getting a 265 gallon reef ready setup from a friend who lost intrest in it. I plan on having the tank built into a fake wall in my basement that is being finished off. This will be my first shark so hopefully things go well for me. He/she will be living with a blonde naso tang, a cole tang, powder blue tang, a yellow tang, and a scribbled rabbit. Wish me luck and possible other sharks to come in the future. My 90 gallon will remain in my master bedroom. rob fusco 2009-01-30
I have a cat bamboo shark egg. I have had him almost 3 months. He has holes in his egg but hasn't hatched yet, do I need to help him out or will he come out by himself? kathy taylor 2009-01-24
Mine hatched about 3 weeks ago, I haven't seen him eat anything yet. I've offered him squid, krill, mysis, live ghost shrimp, he won't eat anything. Any tips?????? chris 2009-01-11
I have had my cat shark egg since nov 4th. How do I know when its ready to hatch and do I need to help it? kathy 2008-12-26
Some of the coolest comments:
Chiloscylliums need to be feed once to twice WEEKLY, not daily. This is covered in publications such as Scott Michael's "Aquarium Sharks and Rays" as well as many online resources. Keeping one in a tank as small as a 150 would be very inhumane, considering this shark is capable of getting large enough that it couldn't even lay straight by the end of it's 20+ year natural lifespan. Using goldfish as feeders will ultimately cause a very malnourished shark with an incredibly short lifespan, and it does NOT do well with mixed communities of fish... these sedentary sharks tend to fall prey to many agile fish (angels and tangs will peck their eyes) David Jones 2009-12-05
I purchased a banded cat shark egg from my LFS and about a little over 3 months it finally hatched. Now "JAWS" is a month old and 7 inches long from head to tail and loves to cruise the tank at night and just hangs out during the day unless she is feeding. I recommend these sharks to anyone that can afford a large tank to house them in (175 or larger). The bigger the tank the more comfortable the shark will feel and the more comfortable any other tank mates will feel. I hand feed her Ghost Shrimp soaked in Vitality vitamin liquid and Frozen Shark Formula. This is the best fish I have ever owned. Ever since I was little I wanted a pet shark, but always do your research before you buy any fish. It will help you in the long run to avoid any problems. Robert 2008-09-16
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these are great pictures. Whoever took them should be very proud. Thankyou for all the information and research. christy 2005-12-05

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