Meet megamouth, a rare shark with rubber lips

A few days ago, the Curious Mega showed that a very rare shark fossil was found in Australia (lost? Click here to read the article). However, the encounter with these very dangerous animals did not stop there. A specimen of a megamouth, the rubber-lipped shark, was seen on a beach in the Philippines.

Of course he gets his name from his huge, wide-open, comical mouth. Many people have not even heard of them simply because these sharks are very rare. According to marine zoologist Christopher Bird, this is the 60th time humans have been in contact with such an animal.

The megamouth family tree

Like whales and basking sharks, megamouths are sucking, that is, because of their large mouths, they are able to suck on jellyfish and plankton, feeding on it. Bird and other scientists also believe the shark's lips are lined with bioluminescent material that attracts prey.

Where they live

Because of its rarity, it is difficult for marine scientists to tell where a megamouth can be found. All that is known is that they live in the deepest areas of the sea, at depths that humans dare not reach. Most of them were found in the Philippines, Japan and Taiwan.

The size of these sharks

Although it is not common to find these sharks, it is known that none of them are medium in size or small. The average of an adult male megamouth is 4 meters long, while a female measures between 1.90 and 4.90 meters. The largest specimen, found in Taiwan, was 5.80 meters.

When he was first seen

Megamouths are part of a recently discovered species. The first encounter with one of these sharks was in 1976, when an animal - measuring about 4.50 meters - swallowed a sandy parachute that was submerged in its habitat. The object was used by the United States Navy as an anchor.

When the crew introduced the new species to the scientists, they were all very perplexed, and it was not until then that the studies began. Over the years, researchers have become aware of the rarity of the animal, which still piques the curiosity of those who spend their lives researching sharks.

The mystery of megamouths

A true mystery surrounds this species of shark, as all the encounters were the result of accidental catches made by fishing boats. From the 2000s onwards, there has been an increase in people's interest and attention towards megamouth as they have become more popular and also because of their rarity.

"The mystery around them reminds us how much we have yet to learn about the natural world, " Bird said, adding that human ignorance about megamouth is perhaps a good thing. "This prevents the information from falling into the hands of those who will surely exploit this creature to sell fish steaks or megamouth burgers."