A 'prehistoric' species of deep-sea shark rarely seen alive

[Jacaylbaro]

 

A 'prehistoric' species of deep-sea shark rarely seen alive has been captured on film at a Japanese marine park.

 

 

Staff at the Awashima Marine Park in Shizuoka, south of Tokyo, shot the footage of the 1.6m long fish after being alerted by a fisherman at a nearby port.

 

It was identified as a female frilled shark, an eel-like creature with a mouthful of needle-sharp teeth that usually lives below 600m.

 

Sometimes referred to as a 'living fossil', the frilled shark is a primitive species that has changed very little since prehistoric times.

 

They feed on other sharks and fish and are sometimes brought up dead in the nets of deep-sea trawlers, but have only very rarely been seen alive.

 

By the time the shark was moved to a seawater pool in the marine park it was in poor condition, but was filmed swimming and opening its mouth.

 

"We believe moving pictures of a live specimen are extremely rare," said an official. "They live between 600 and 1,000m under the water, which is deeper than humans can go.

 

"We think it may have come close to the surface because it was sick, or else it was weakened because it was in shallow waters."

 

The shark died a few hours later.