If you ’re thinking of going down the unconventional road for this year ’s Halloween costume , we ’ve buzz off just the divine guidance for you : a brand - novel mintage of chimaera , better know as a ghost shark orspookfish .
scientist discovered the new metal money , which goes by the scientific nameHarriotta avia – aviameaning “ grandmother ” in Latin , in honour of study source Dr Brit Finucci ’s grannie – and the common name Australasian Narrow - nosed Spookfish , off the seacoast of New Zealand and Australia .
This neighborhood is no foreign toghost shark – the field describing the fresh mintage knight it “ a global diversity [ hotspot ] for chimaeroids ” – but it was previously thought that this finicky species was n’t actually its own mintage at all . or else , it was believe to be a var. of another species , Harriotta raleighana , which is found across the earth .
But with the help of genetics and a closer inspection of its morphology , the researchers were able-bodied to identifyH. aviaas a species in its own right .
“ Harriotta aviais alone due to its elongate , narrow and depressed schnoz ; long , slim trunk ; large eyes ; and very long , broad pectoral fins , ” said Finucci in astatement . “ It is a lovely umber brown colour . ”
Together with the determination that thenew speciesappears to live entirely in the waters of Australia and New Zealand , the squad has suggested that it might be time to re - appraise what we retrieve we know aboutHarriottaspecies .
“ [ The study show ] thatHarriotta raleighana , a assume globally circulate species , belike comprises several species and the genusHarriottawarrants a revision with specimens representing all ocean basin , ” the author compose .
That may not be an easy labor given the profoundness at which these unusual - lookingcreatureslive .
“ Ghost sharks like this one are for the most part confined to the sea flooring , living in deepness of up to 2,600 [ m ] [ 8530 feet ] , ” sound out Finucci . The level of pressure to be found at such depthsisn’t exactly human - friendly .
“ Their home ground makes them hard to study and monitor , meaning we do n’t know a lot about their biota or threat status , but it makes discoveries like this even more exciting , ” Finucci explained .
What we do know is that , despite the nickname , touch sharks are n’t really sharks at all . Whilst the two groups are still related to each other , it ’s thought that theydivergedfrom one another other nearly 400 million age ago . Both remain cartilaginous , but ghost sharks have wound up with several physical difference from their relatives .
The discipline is publish inEnvironmental Biology of Fishes .
