A species of shark rarely seen alive because its natural habitat is about 2,000 feet under the sea
was captured on film by staff at a Japanese marine park this week.
The Awashima Marine Park in Shizuoka, south of Tokyo, was alerted by a fisherman at a nearby port on Sunday
that he had spotted an odd-looking eel-like creature with a mouthful of needle-sharp teeth.
Marine park staff caught the 5 foot (1.6 meter) long creature, which they identified as a female frilled shark,
sometimes referred to as a "living fossil" because it is a primitive species that has changed little since prehistoric times.
The shark appeared to be in poor condition when park staff moved it to a seawater pool
where they filmed it swimming and opening its jaws. "We believe moving pictures of a live specimen are extremely rare,"
said an official at the park. "They live between 1,968 and 3,280 feet (600 and 1,000 meters) under the water,
which is deeper than humans can go."
"We think it may have come close to the surface because it was sick, or else it was weakened because it was in
shallow waters," the official said.
The shark died a few hours after being caught.
Frilled sharks, which feed on other sharks and sea creatures, are sometimes
caught in the nets of trawlers but are rarely seen alive.
Rare shark captured on film
Re: Rare shark captured on film
... great vid 
