The leopard shark is characterized by its distinctive spotted pattern, which is how it got its name. Its back is dark gray to brown, covered with dark, horseshoe-shaped spots, while its belly is white. Its body is sleek, with a relatively small head in comparison to its body.

As adults, leopard sharks typically reach a length between 4 and 6 feet with females generally being larger than males.

The leopard shark frequents the coastal waters of North America, from Canada in the north to Baja California in Mexico to the south.

The leopard shark lives in the shallow coastal waters of bays and estuaries, where it spends most of its time near the seafloor. The leopard shark can also be found at greater depths.

The leopard shark is primarily piscivorous, feeding on small fish, squid, rays and other marine organisms it finds near the seafloor. It is considered an opportunistic predator, meaning it easily adapts to different food sources depending on the availability of prey.

The leopard shark is an ovoviviparous species. After a gestation period of about 10 months, the female gives birth to litters of 10 to 30 baby sharks.