Compared to the frilled shark, the southern African frilled shark has several proportional differences, including a longer head and gill slits, more widely spaced eyes and nares, broader mouth, and a greater distance between the head and the pectoral fins. The largest known female is the immature 117 cm (46 in) long holotype, and the largest known males measure 99 cm (39 in) long. In life the shark is dark gray, but covered with a thin membrane that gives it a uniform dark brown color.[1]