ReviewEcology and evolution2025
The Phenomenon of Piebaldism in Sharks: A Review of Global Sightings and Patterns.
Review in Ecology and evolution, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. An erratum has been issued. Cited by 6 papers.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
6 citing papers in PubMed.
- Spots All Over: Records of Piebaldism in Red-Tailed SquirrelEcology and evolution · 2026Article
- A complex pigmentation disorder reveals energetic and ecological costs of coloration in a deep-sea sharpnose sevengill shark.Journal of fish biology · 2026Article
- Expanding the Toolbox: Mangrove Use by Spotted Eagle Rays (Ecology and evolution · 2026Article
- Insights into the structure of grey reef shark aggregation, Carcharhinus amblyrhynchos (Bleeker, 1856), in two distinct channels of the Maldivian archipelago, Indian Ocean.Journal of fish biology · 2026Article
- Aberrant Pigmentation in a Schooling Cownose Ray (Ecology and evolution · 2026Article
- The Phenomenon of Piebaldism in Sharks: A Review of Global Sightings and Patterns.Ecology and evolution · 2025Review
Corrections and comments
- Erratum issued
Authors and funding
10 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Chromatic disorders in elasmobranchs (sharks and rays) have been reported in several species, but little is known about their true abundance or consequences for survival and fitness. Piebaldism, a form of leucism characterized by partial loss of pigmentation, is among the rarest and least understood chromatic disorders reported in elasmobranchs. We conducted an extensive assessment of published and unpublished cases of piebaldism observed in sharks in the wild. Here, we report the observation of 25 incidences of this condition witnessed in 17 species of sharks from 11 families (Carcharhinidae, Dalatiidae, Galeocerdonidae, Ginglymostomatidae, Hexanchidae, Heterodontidae, Lamnidae, Odontaspidae, Scyliorhinidae, Squatinidae, and Sphyrnidae). The anatomical distribution and severity varied across shark families, with Ginglymostomatidae showing widespread aberrations on the flanks and pectoral fins, while piebaldism in Galeocerdonidae is more restricted. A single Sphyrnidae individual exhibited piebaldism across its body, while in the speciose Carcharhinidae family, piebaldism varied widely in intensity and distribution. We further discuss the taxonomic and geographical distribution of piebaldism reports, the potential fitness consequences, and uncertainty regarding the terminology used to discuss chromatic disorders in elasmobranchs. Finally, we comment on the importance of ecotourism and citizen science for improving our understanding of rare phenotypic conditions in marine megafauna such as elasmobranchs.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.