A one-in-a-million alien shark has been caught off of the coast of Japan. The Megamouth Shark is so rare that when the first one was found in 1976, researchers had to create a whole new species categorization for it. This particular specimen, caught near Shizuoka, Japan, is one of only 58 Megamouth Sharks ever seen by humans.
The Megamouth can be up to 17 feet long, and generally spends most of its times in the deep depths of the ocean, though the creatures sometimes come up near the surface to eat. It’s thought that the Megamouth can survive several kilometres below the surface of the ocean.
During it’s yearly “Shark Week,” Discovery showed footage (above) of a living Megamouth shark.
The shark was so strange looking that the channel dubbed it an “alien” shark. Another “alien” shark is the Goblin Shark, a specimen of which was found last week. The Goblin was captured by shrimp fishermen off the coast of the United States.
The Japanese find was an extremely rare event, but was not widely reported at the time, GrindTV says. However, about 1,500 people did attend the Marine Science Museum in Shizuoka City to watch the post-mortem examination of the 13-foot female megamouth. Scientists hope the necropsy will help them learn more about the sharks.
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