The Pigeye Shark is sporadically distributed in tropical and subtropical waters of the Indo-West Pacific Ocean, including the east coast of southern Africa, Madagascar, Gulf of Aden, Pakistan, India, Sri Lanka, Indonesia and northern Australia (Bass et al. 1973, Compagno 1984, Last and Stevens 1994). Compagno (1984) indicates several localities in the Indo-West Pacific where its suspected occurrence awaits confirmation. It also occurs in Nigeria (Compagno 1984). This species inhabits coastal waters, usually close to the bottom. It also occasionally enters brackish water (Last and Stevens 1994).