Elusive ‘demon’ shark with shining white eyes discovered by Australian researchers
There’s an elusive, egg-laying “demon” shark swimming in the deep waters off Australia’s coast — and researchers only recently learned of its existence.
The shark, dubbed Apristurus ovicorrugatus, eluded discovery for years, though there was evidence it was lurking in the sea, according to a study published April 23 in the Journal of Fish Biology.
It’s the newest member of the genus Apristurus, a large subset of sharks often called cat sharks or demon sharks.
While much of the world’s oceans are full of color, with bright and vibrant life, A. ovicorrugatus is a monochromatic predator.
Photos taken by researchers show a torpedo-like body that is “uniformly dark brown,” a jaw filled with sharp, translucent teeth, and a pair of “shiny” white eyes. It’s right at home where the light is low.
It turned out an A. ovicorrugatus specimen had been found and archived, but it had been misidentified as an already-discovered species of cat shark, researchers said.
Researchers uncovered that mistake thanks to a mysterious egg case recovered in 2011, according to the study. It was found at a depth of roughly 1,600 feet and looked like an egg belonging to the Apristurus genus, but not any known species.
“The egg cases possessed very distinctive longitudinal ridges on their surfaces which were T-shaped in cross-section,” lead author Will White, of the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization, told Live Science. “Only one other species in the world has been found to have egg cases with that form of ridging and that is a different genus entirely.”
But the misidentified cat shark specimen had the answer. It was a pregnant female, carrying an egg case. When researchers compared their mystery egg to the egg case, they found a match — and identified a brand new species of cat shark.
“The number of nominal species in the genus Apristurus is continually increasing as new discoveries are made,” the study said. “The discovery of new Apristurus species as new locations and depths are surveyed suggests that the diversity of species within this genus is far from being resolved.”
This story was originally published May 10, 2023 at 2:49 PM with the headline "Elusive ‘demon’ shark with shining white eyes discovered by Australian researchers."