Researchers at New Zealand's National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research (NIWA) recently discovered a new species of deep-sea Ghost Shark (previously at Boing Boing) in the Chatham Rise off the coast of New Zealand—roughly 1.6 miles under the water.
Ghost sharks are apparently a kind of chimaera—a smooth-skinned, cartilaginous fish similar to sharks and rays, but with more rodent-like teeth (as well as separate anal and urogenital openings, according to Wikipedia). Technically speaking, they are neither ghosts, nor sharks. But they are very old, and very little is known about them, because they tend to leave so deep in the ocean.
"Ghost sharks are incredibly under-studied, there is a lot we don't know about them," said Dr Brit Finucci, a fisheries scientist at Niwa who helped discover the new species.
"Chimaeras are quite cryptic in nature – they can be hard to find in the deep ocean … and they generally don't get the same attention sharks do, when it comes to research."
The new ghost shark was found in the Chathams Rise, roughly 750km east of New Zealand's coast. It is distinctive for its very elongated snout that can make up half of its entire body length and has likely evolved to aid its hunt for prey. The chocolate-brown fish can grow up to a metre long, has large milky-coloured eyes and a serrated dorsal fin to deter predators.
Roughly 55 species of ghost shark have been discovered globally, with about 12 of those found in New Zealand and South Pacific waters.
This new species has been given the scientific name of Harriotta avia, after the lead researcher's grandmother, and the Latin word for, well, grandmother. As Dr. Finucci told the BBC:
Avia means grandmother in Latin, I wanted to give this nod to her because she proudly supported me through my career as a scientist. Chimaeras are also rather ancient relatives – the grandmas and grandpas – of fish and I thought the name was well suited.
That's slightly more adorable than, ya know, a long-snouted deep sea ghost shark.