6-gilled shark vs common bottlenose dolphin

Hexanchus griseus compared with Tursiops truncatus

Key Differences

• 6-gilled shark is Not Evaluated while common bottlenose dolphin is Least Concern.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	6-gilled shark	common bottlenose dolphin
Kingdom same	Animalia (Animals)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum same	Chordata (Chordates)	Chordata (Chordates)
Class	Elasmobranchii	Mammalia (Mammals)
Order	Hexanchiformes (Hexanchiformes)	Cetacea (Whales & Dolphins)
Family	Hexanchidae	Delphinidae (Oceanic Dolphins)
Genus	Hexanchus	Tursiops (Bottlenose Dolphins)
Species	Hexanchus griseus	Tursiops truncatus

Evolutionary Relationship

6-gilled shark and common bottlenose dolphin share a common ancestor at the Phylum level: Chordata. (Chordates)

Conservation Status

6-gilled shark

NE — Not Evaluated

common bottlenose dolphin

LC — Least Concern

Population: ~600.0K

Trend: Stable →

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	6-gilled shark	common bottlenose dolphin
Diet	—	Carnivore
Average Lifespan	—	45 years
Average Length	—	3.0 m
Average Weight	—	300.0 kg

Habitat & Geographic Range

6-gilled shark

Habitat

Native to Asia and Europe and South America, inhabiting ecosystems characteristic of the region.

Range

Widely distributed across Asia (Taiwan), Europe (4 countries), and South America (Chile, Venezuela).

common bottlenose dolphin

Habitat

Found across multiple habitat types including tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests, tropical and subtropical dry broadleaf forests, and tropical and subtropical grasslands and savannas, among 12 distinct biome types. Populations are also found in montane and highland environments at higher elevations.

Range

Widely distributed across Asia (Taiwan), Europe (6 countries), and South America (Colombia, Ecuador, Venezuela).

6-gilled shark

The 6-gilled shark (Hexanchus griseus) is a species in the genus Hexanchus. It is not yet evaluated on the IUCN Red List. It is found across Chile, Denmark, Norway, and 2 other countries, inhabiting Native to Asia and Europe and South America, inhabiting ecosystems characteristic of the region.

common bottlenose dolphin

The most studied and recognized dolphin species, bottlenose dolphins inhabit warm and temperate oceans worldwide, from coastal shallows to the open sea. Highly intelligent with large brains relative to body size, they demonstrate self-recognition, complex communication, and social learning. They live in fluid fission-fusion societies and cooperate to herd fish. A keystone indicator species for marine ecosystem health.

Shared Countries

Both species can be found in 6 countries:

🇩🇰 Denmark 🇳🇴 Norway 🇵🇹 Portugal 🇸🇪 Sweden 🇹🇼 Taiwan 🇻🇪 Venezuela