“地球上最丑的鲨鱼”：首次在深海栖息地拍摄难以捉摸的哥布林鲨鱼

‘Ugliest Shark on the Planet’: See the Elusive Goblin Shark, Filmed for the First Time in Its Deep-Sea Habitat

Scientists spotted the enigmatic creatures in 2019 and again in 2024, marking the first time they’ve been observed alive in the wild. The sightings drastically expand the animals’ known geographic and depth range

Sarah Kuta|Daily Correspondent

For the first time, scientists have spotted rare and elusive goblin sharks swimming in their deep-sea habitat.

The sightings—described in a study published on May 19 in the Journal of Fish Biology—offer new insights into the behavior and ecology of the mysterious creatures. Until now, most live observations have come from sharks that were accidentally hauled in on fishing lines.

“They’ve captured the imagination of so many people, but we’ve never really seen them alive,” study co-author Alan Jamieson, a marine biologist and founding director of the Minderoo-University of Western Australia Deep-Sea Research Centre, tells the Guardian’s Petra Stock. “We actually know virtually nothing about them.”

In July 2019, scientists were using a remotely operated underwater vehicle to explore the central Pacific Ocean near Jarvis Island when an 11-foot-long creature with a long snout swam by at a depth of roughly 4,000 feet. It was a large, solitary male goblin shark that, based on its size, was estimated to have been more than 50 years old.

“Seeing the most iconic of all the deep-sea sharks alive and looking healthy in its natural habitat is a unique honor,” says lead author Aaron Judah, a marine biologist at the University of Hawaii at Mānoa, in a statement.

A glimpse of the Goblin Shark - 𝘔𝘪𝘵𝘴𝘶𝘬𝘶𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘢 𝘰𝘸𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘯𝘪

The footage deepens scientists’ knowledge of these poorly understood animals. The 2024 sighting, which occurred around 6,550 feet below the surface, extends the species’ known depth range by nearly 2,300 feet.

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你知道吗？ Goblin shark confusion