This species is commonly found off sandy beaches and in estuaries and enclosed bays and sounds, mostly over mud and sand bottoms. There is a seasonal inshore-offshore migration, with individuals moving to deeper offshore waters in winter (Compagno 1984).

The Atlantic Sharpnose Shark is a small, coastal carcharhinid that rarely exceeds 110 cm total length (TL). The life history of this species in the US Gulf of Mexico has been fairly well described. In this area, female seldom exceeds 107 cm TL and males rarely surpass 105 cm TL. Females generally mature between 85?90 cm TL (or 2.8?3.9 years of age) and males mature between 80?85 cm TL (or 2.4?3.5 years of age) (Parsons 1985, Branstetter 1987). Thus, both males and females reach maturity at about 80% of their maximum size. Maximum observed ages in two separate studies were 6+ years and 7+ years for both sexes combined, whereas theoretical longevities derived from von Bertalanffy growth curves predict that this species should reach at least 10 years (Cortés 2000a). Recent tag-recapture information has shown that this species can live to at least nine years (J. Carlson pers. comm.).

The Atlantic Sharpnose Shark is a placental viviparous species that reproduces annually. Gestation period has been reported to last from 10?12 months; litter size is generally 4?6, ranging from 1?7. Offspring are born at 30?35 cm TL or about 30% of maximum adult size. There is a positive correlation between maternal size and litter size and evidence of a trade-off between the number and size of offspring, i.e. there is a negative correlation between litter size and offspring size (Parsons 1983). Mating occurs between mid-May and mid-July and parturition generally takes place mostly in June. The sex ratio at birth is 1:1.

This species uses enclosed bays and sounds as nursery areas. Despite the abundance of this shark, its diet has not been very well described quantitatively. It is dominated by teleost fishes (66%) and crustaceans (32%), but also includes some molluscs (Branstetter 1981, Gelsleichter et al. 1999, Cortés unpubl. data).

Cortés (1995) extensively studied the demography of the Atlantic Sharpnose Shark in the Gulf of Mexico and found that the life history characteristics of this species did not allow it to withstand the levels of fishing mortality it was thought to be subjected to. Recent demographic studies of this species by Cortés (in press) that incorporate uncertainty in estimates of vital rates indicate that the Atlantic Sharpnose Shark has moderate population growth rates (?) (mean=1.056 yr^-1; 95% confidence interval = 0.970?1.195 yr^-1) and short generation times (?) (mean=4.9 years, 95% CI = 4.0?5.4 years). Elasticity analysis (which examines the proportional sensitivity of ? to a proportional change in a vital rate) also showed that ? is more sensitive to juvenile survival and adult survival than to fertility (which includes survival to age-1). Annual survivorship values used in Cortés (2002) were estimated through five indirect life history methods and ranged from 55?79%.