Science/Tech

A New Shark Discovered by Scientists that Glows in the Dark

By Kanika Gupta | Update Date: Dec 29, 2015 02:37 PM EST

Scientists claim to have found new species of shark that has a jet black skin, huge protruding eyes and and special cells that can glow in the dark. This shark is named as Ninja Lanternshark. Officially, the shark is named after Peter Benchley, author of famous book, Jaws and also an ardent shark-lover. The scientific name of the shark is Etmopterus Benchleyi. However, to come up with a common name for the shark, the researcher Vicky Vasquez said took her clues from her conversation with her 8-year-old cousin. Vasquez explains that the it is the photophores in the shark's skin that produces a soft glow in the dark ocean. According to the scientists, this ability to glow faintly helps the sea animal to blend in with the little light that penetrates the depths of the ocean that makes it invisible from below. This allows them to hunt on small fish and shrimps while protecting themselves from the large predators. It is this steal ability with shark's black appearance that made the kids call it "Super Ninja Shark," says Hakai Magazine.

This shark was discovered by a team of researchers at the Pacific Shark Research Center, California in Moss Landing. The size of the newly found shark is bout half a meter length or 18-inches long. It lives as deep as 1,000 meters off the Pacific coast of Central America. Its discovery was reported in the latest edition of the Journal of the Ocean Science Foundation. 

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