The Etmopteridae are a family of sharks in the order Squaliformes, commonly known as lantern sharks. Their name comes from the presence of light-producing photophores on their bodies. The members of this family are small, under 90 cm (35 in) long, and are found in deep waters worldwide.^[1] The 45 species are placed in five genera. Three-quarters of the species are in the genus Etmopterus.

Lantern sharks
Velvet belly lanternshark, Etmopterus spinax
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Chondrichthyes
Subclass:	Elasmobranchii
Subdivision:	Selachimorpha
Order:	Squaliformes
Family:	Etmopteridae Fowler, 1934