Rare ‘ghost shark’ discovered in New Zealand

10518013 Incredibly rare baby ghost shark is found lurking off the coast of New Zealand's South Island - leaving scientists astonished
Brit Finucci/NIWA
Daniel Keane16 February 2022

Scientists in New Zealand have discovered a “ghost shark”, a rare type of fish that lives deep in the ocean.

The newly-hatched shark – also known as a chimaera - was found on Tuesday at a depth of around 1.2km underwater near the country’s South Island.

Researchers at the National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research (NIWA) said the discovery of a younger shark was exceptionally rare.

Their embryos develop in egg capsules laid on the sea floor, feeding off a yolk until they are ready to hatch, NIWA said.

Fisheries Scientist Dr Brit Finucci, who was part of the team that made the discovery, told the BBC: “Deep water species are generally hard to find, and like ghost sharks in particular, they tend to be quite cryptic. So we just don’t see them very often.

“You can tell this ghost shark recently hatched because it has a full belly of egg yolk. It’s quite astonishing. Most deep-water ghost sharks are known adult specimens; neonates are infrequently reported so we know very little about them.”

She added younger ghost sharks have “distinctive colour patterns” and look different to their adult counterparts.

“Finding this ghost shark will help us better understand the biology and ecology of this mysterious group of deep-water fish,” she said.

Further tests and genetic analysis will be carried out to determine the exact species, Dr Finucci said.

“We’ll take a little tissue sample and random genetics... Then we’ll do a whole bunch of morphometrics or body measurements as well, which will also help us assess what species we’re looking at.”

Adult sharks can live for up to 30 years and grow to two metres in length.

They are commonly found around New Zealand and eastern Australia.

Some 16 per cent of ghost shark species are “threatened” or “near threatened”, according to the Shark Specialist Group.

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