Reaching a length of 75 cm (30 in), this brown to gray shark has a very thick body with a prominent "humpback" and extremely rough skin.

Found near the sea floor over outer continental and insular shelves and upper slopes, the prickly dogfish is thought to be a slow-moving predator of small benthic organisms.

Australian ichthyologist James Douglas Ogilby originally described the prickly dogfish from a desiccated specimen discovered on a beach on Bruny Island off southeastern Tasmania, Australia.

[1][4] This species is found close to the bottom over outer continental and insular shelves and upper slopes.

The skin is extremely rough due to a covering of large dermal denticles with narrow, knife-like crowns.

[3][4] The unusual shape and sizable, oily liver of the prickly dogfish suggests it is a slow swimmer that can hover over the sea floor with minimal effort.

It probably hunts for small, bottom-dwelling invertebrates and fishes, perhaps facilitated by its large nostrils and labial papillae.

[3] Some sources indicate the numbers caught have declined from historical levels, and the International Union for Conservation of Nature assesses this species as Near Threatened.