New ghost shark species may have been found in Costa Rica
Scientists say the latest discovery has a ‘shorter’ snout, a ‘darker coloration pattern’ and a ‘much longer spine on its dorsal fin’
Costa Rican scientists may have discovered a new species of ghost shark in Pacific waters near Cabo Blanco and Cano Island.
The latest discovery has a “shorter” snout, a “darker coloration pattern” and a “much longer spine on its dorsal fin”, according to Arturo Angulo Sibaja, a biology professor at the University of Costa Rica.
The discovery marked the only such species “known for the Central American coast”, Sibaja said, adding genetic analysis indicated the new species had “no reproductive contact” with other ghost sharks.
But earlier specimens collected “near Peru and Chile were very similar to the species” from Costa Rica, so scientists were still comparing the specimens before finalising the conclusion, he said.
Three species of ghost shark – a type of fish that is related to sharks – have been discovered elsewhere, in waters off South Africa, Taiwan, Australia, Japan and in the Atlantic between Greenland and Brazil.