Cookie cutter shark.
The cookie cutter shark (Isistius brasiliensis) is a small shark about the size of a house cat. They attack predators many times larger than themselves. They can even bite through soft parts of nuclear submarines.
Cookie cutter sharks were discovered by French naturalists in the early 19th century. But it wasn’t until the 1970s that people realized how dangerous these tiny sea creatures were.
At the time, the deep circular wounds that researchers found on all kinds of marine life, from small fish to dolphins and even great white sharks, were a mystery.
It wasn’t until 1971, when marine researcher Everett Jones discovered small round pieces of flesh in the stomachs of cookie cutter sharks, that marine scientists began to realize that these small sharks had can seriously injure some of the ocean’s strongest creatures.
Before Everett Jones’ groundbreaking discovery, everyone assumed that the horrifying deep circular wounds commonly found on all types of marine life were caused by parasitic lice, lanternflies, bacterial infections or some other organism. Another mysterious object causes it.
It wasn’t until they began studying the shark’s mouth and serrated teeth that they understood how dangerous they were. It is the large lips that allow the cookie shark to grip its prey by vacuuming on smooth surfaces.
They then sink their sharp teeth in and, using a twisting motion, scoop out chunks of the victim’s flesh, leaving bloody craters. These are not small wounds either, as the heaviest wounds ever recorded were 5cm wide and 7cm deep.
Cookie cutter sharks (right) live off larger fish and marine mammals, like the dolphin pictured here. This shark can cause serious skin and tissue damage. (Source: odditycentral.com)
Little is known about cookie cutter sharks because they are deep-dwelling creatures. During the day, they stay at depths of up to 3,500m and only move upward at night.
Although the hunting mechanism of the cookie cutter shark is still unknown, one thing is certain: this shark cannot be taken lightly.
The crater-like wounds they cause have been found on at least 48 species of whales or dolphins, including killer whales, many sharks, seals, stingrays, tuna, and fish. sword.
Cookie cutter sharks have even been known to attack nuclear submarines and cause serious damage.
According to Elasmo-Research, in the 1970s, cookie cutter shark attacks on soft parts of submarines such as exposed cables or rubber domes made these ships unable to continue moving, even Even causing oil to leak and having to return to the dock for repairs. To be able to solve this problem, the soft parts of nuclear submarines have been equipped with fiberglass coatings.
In 2009, a man swimming between Hawaii and Maui at night was bitten in the chest by a cookie cutter shark. In 2019, two swimmers participating in the Oceans Seven challenge were also bitten by this shark with large lacerations to the abdomen, legs and shoulders. Additionally, some bodies recovered from the water were also discovered with cookie cutter shark bite marks.
So, if you don’t want to be attacked by this small but extremely dangerous creature, make sure to stay away from deep waters in areas known to be their habitat.
