On an underwater expedition, explorers make a stunning discovery. They film a shark up close. The animal is bigger than your submarine.
Nassau – In the wild, it is very rare for humans and sharks to meet face to face. Researchers from the company OceanX have now had such a special encounter in the deep sea off the coast of the Bahamas. They experience up close how a so-called gray shark swims just as close as possible to their submarine. During the dive in 2019, the research team even managed to make history.
Researchers discover gray sharks – and make history
The gray shark – or bluntnose sixgill shark – is a particularly rare species of shark: “This ancient species is older than most dinosaurs and is a dominant predator of the deep-sea ecosystem,” the researchers write after their shark encounter. That is why the gray shark is often referred to as a living fossil, since it has hardly changed genetically for more than 150 million years, similar to a Frilled shark, believed to be the world’s longest-existing shark species.
The researchers filmed their encounter with the shark and the expedition and posted it online. The goal of the researchers was to mark sharks. This is common in order to be able to determine the existence of a species and whether a species is endangered. “In partnership with the Cape Eleuthera Institute, we were able to make history by tagging an animal from a submersible for the first time ever.”
Researchers manage to tag gray shark from submersible for the first time
Previously, it had only once been possible to mark a shark of this species. The mission’s chief scientist, Dr. Dean Grubbs of the FSU Marine Lab was the first person to tag a gray shark with a satellite transmitter. So far, however, this has only been possible on the surface of the sea, where this shark species is rarely seen.
“It’s a monster”: Researchers marvel at gray sharks
The video shows that the encounter is also a special one for the scientists on board. The video shows the shark swimming just past the boat. One of the researchers present repeatedly repeated: “Oh my God, oh my God”. The other researcher can hardly believe his eyes either: “Look at how big this thing is” and adds “that’s a monster”. You can also see that the shark is even larger than the three men’s submarine.
On average, the gray shark is even larger than that Great white shark, which incidentally is responsible for the extinction of the megalodon. But despite the excitement, the team managed to complete their mission successfully. The marking makes it possible to better understand and analyze the behavior of the deep-sea shark, whose species is considered potentially endangered. Only last a video went viral to confirm the alleged existence of the megalodoneven Researchers thought they had rediscovered a megalodon.
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