At the bottom of the deep sea, there exist countless mysteries, rare and strange creatures. Among them is the Goblin Shark, one of the rarest sharks in the world and known as a “living fossil”.
According to biologists, this shark is probably the only remaining species of the Mitsukuridae species, which lived about 125 million years ago.
And according to NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Organization of the United States), only about 10 people in this decade have ever seen a goblin shark, which is enough to see the rarity of this “living fossil” species. ” This.
This is probably the most different and strange species in the shark family because of its ugly shape. It has a hooked nose that is longer than other sharks and resembles a bird’s beak.
The head of a goblin shark
In addition, they are the only shark species with a mostly pink body, along with jaws that can stretch outward to capture prey.
Goblin sharks are found in deep seas where sunlight can hardly reach. The deepest specimen ever caught was at a depth of 1,300 m.
Their prey is mainly squid, fish, crabs, and bacteria living deep in the sea. The history of the species and its reproductive habits are largely unknown and so rare.
Adult males are usually 2.4 – 3.1 m in length and females are 3.1 – 3.5 m in length. The largest specimen found was 3.9 m long and weighed 210 kg.
Another interesting point is that 25% of this fish’s body weight is liver.
“Collisions” between goblin sharks and humans
The first goblin shark was caught by a Japanese fisherman off the coast of Yokohama, in 1897. This specimen was later identified as a 1m long male shark.
On January 25, 2007, a 1.3 m long shark was caught alive in Tokyo Bay in waters 150 – 200 m deep. It was taken to Tokyo Sea Life Park to be placed in an aquarium, but died 2 days later.
According to The Telegraph, a goblin shark was discovered on April 19, 2014 off the coast of Key West Island, Florida, USA. This shark is light pink in color, about 5.5 m long, and was discovered in a shrimp net.
Goblin shark discovered off the coast of Key West
Carl Moore – a fisherman in the group recalled: “I didn’t even know what it was. I didn’t measure anything because the fish had too sharp teeth.” After taking photos of the strange creature, Moore released it into the ocean.
The photos were sent to NOAA on May 2. Here, the team of experts determined this was a goblin shark and possibly a female.
Metro newspaper reported that on March 3, 2015, a group of fishermen in Australia caught a goblin shark that looked extremely strange and scary.
This fish usually swims at the bottom of the sea. When they detect an electric current from their prey, they will lower their lower teeth and rush to approach the prey. Their sharp teeth will pierce their prey
The animal has now been brought to the Australian museum. Mr. Mark McGrouther, the museum’s fish collection manager, said this was the most interesting creature he had ever seen with “unbelievable teeth”.
The Daily Mail reported that the goblin shark was caught in the net of Lochlainn Kelly – an Australian fisherman, at a depth of 609m, while the two were fishing off the coast of Victoria.
Lochlainn said: “I was very surprised and happy to see the fish. I have seen them in pictures and this is the first time I have seen them with my own eyes”.
