Tiny Shark That Glows Discovered in the Deep Ocean

[Monroe]

The story ...

 

"Scientists have discovered a shark that glows in the deep ocean and is so tiny that it might even fit in your hand."

 

 

Tiny shark that glows discovered in the deep ocean

 

By Michael Casey

December 28, 2015

 

http://www.foxnews.com/science/2015/12/28/tiny-shark-that-glows-discovered-in-deep-ocean.html?intcmp=latestnews

 

Scientists have discovered a shark that glows in the deep ocean and is so tiny that it might even fit in your hand.

 

Named Etmopterus benchleyi in honor of shark conservationist and “Jaws” author Peter Benchley, the jet-black lanternshark with glass-like teeth and emerald eyes was caught in 2010 as part of an expedition off the Central American coastline on the Pacific Ocean side.

 

With only eight specimens to go by, very little is known about this shark which spends most its time in the darkest parts of the ocean at depths ranging from 2,742 feet to as much as 4,734 feet. Scientists still don’t know what it eats, what threats it faces and even how widespread it is.

 

“It is probably living in an environment where it might, even though it is really small compared to other sharks, be one of the larger things there,” said Victoria Elena Vasquez, a grad student at the Pacific Shark Research Center in California and part of the team that made the discovery along with David Ebert of the center and Douglas Long of the California Academy of Sciences.

 

“We’re not totally sure what this one is eating but other lantersharks are eating smaller fish, crustaceans,” she said. “It’s likely that it’s eating the same things or something similar.“

 

But the scientists behind the discovery can say for sure this pint-sized shark wouldn’t send beach goers into a tizzy – as the famous great white shark did in “Jaws.”

 

“I've seen a few reports alluding to how dangerous and scary this shark might be, which is pretty funny to me since the largest one we found (a full grown adult) was 515 mm long (20 inches) from head to tail,” Vasquez said.

 

“Since we don't have a lot of specimens we can't confirm if they grow larger, but since it lives in the deep sea, it would be too challenging for people to have a chance encounter in the water without a submersible,” she told FoxNews.com.  “So I just wanted to clarify that there is no danger to people with this new species.”

 

Although this shark has the characteristic glow of most lanternsharks, they believe it uses that skill much less – hence its common name, the Ninja Lanternshark. That name was suggested by several cousins of Vasquez ranging in ages 8 to 14 and inspired by its black appearance.

 

“The idea is that they would be stealthier than other lanternsharks,” Vasquez said, adding they found fewer of the photophores or dots that emit light on this species than on other lantersharks.

 

.... more at the link

 

[ROTS]

So we are going to take the Sharks glow in the dark DNA and put it, inside of Jaws......................So we could immediately tell when a shark is in the sea.......................this way we could have an easy time of punching them in the nose ( there sonar ).

I could imagine all the videos of glow in the dark sharks.

Sharks are funny big and strong but they have to keep moving or else they will stop breathing.

Edited January 8, 2016 by ROTS

[Monroe]

ROTS

 

"So we are going to take the Sharks glow in the dark DNA and put it, inside of Jaws......................So we could immediately tell when a shark is in the sea."

 

I think that's a great idea ... I would say instead of "in the sea" ... "in the area". That way swimmers along the shore would have a "heads up" and be warned to get out of the water. Of course, this would only work for people swimming at night ... day swimmers would still be on their own with " a hope and a prayer".

 

However, thinking along those lines .. if all sharks could be briefly caught ... have a microchip inserted and then released, like people do with pets ... shark microchip detectors could be set up around various beaches just under the water to detect sharks coming into the area.

 

The DNA glowing shark would have another thing going against it ... it would be more easily spotted for fishermen to catch ... maybe in time there would be no sharks left in the ocean ... the same with an implanted microchip, they would be to easily located.

 

I guess ... to be fair to the shark, we will have to continue swimming at our own risk and hope we come out of the water exactly like we went into the water !

[ROTS]

I do not want to label the shark as a sex offender or gun owner. I just want the thing to "naturally glow in the dark". It would be so awesome to see Sharks at night from a far.