Taxonomic adjustments of the Oligocene and Miocene Odontaspididae and Carchariidae based on extant specimens

Based on new information on the dentition of Carcharias taurus Rafinesque, 1810, the genus Carcharias Agassiz, 1838 was reassessed and both Araloselachus cuspidatus (Agassiz, 1843) and Araloselachus vorax (Le Hon, 1871) are herein assigned to the genus Carcharias Rafinesque, 1810. The lost type series of Araloselachus agespensis Glikman 1964 is replaced by a neotype and neoparatypes. The available specimens of the syntype series of Carcharias cuspidatus are subdivided into a lectotype and paralectotypes. Carcharias gustrowensis (Winkler, 1875) is considered to be a valid species. Both syntypes of Carcharias acutissimus (Agassiz, 1843) are tentatively assigned to Carcharoides catticus (Philippi, 1846). Additional specimens formerly attributed to Carcharias acutissimus present similar ontogenetic heterodonty as found in C. taurus, suggesting they are juvenile individuals of C. cuspidatus. Specimens from Miocene deposits previously referred to as C. taurus are herein identified as C. cuspidatus. Based on the ontogenetic heterodonty observed in C. taurus, herein the types of C. divergens (Solt, 1988) are considered to represent a young adult individual of C. cuspidatus.