Deep-Sea Sharks

Deep Sea Sharks are sharks that thrive on the ocean floor. Deep-sea sharks are very flabby, slow moving fish that can only muster small bursts of speed. The deep sea shark that is spotted in this video is a Six Gill shark or Hexanchus Griseus. The Six Gilled Shark appears mostly in depths between 1,500 and 6,000 feet in tropical refions of the world. These sharks can appear to have a brown or gray body color and can grow to be anywhere from 12 to 18 feet. The Hexanchus Griseus is a powerful shark has only one dorsal fin unlike most sharks who have a large dorsal fin on their backs. The Six Gill Shark feed on cephalopods, crustaceans, fish, and rays. At night they migrate up to shallower waters to feed. Deep-sea sharks are very solitary creatures so the nature of the reproductive rituals are still being researched. It can be assumed, however, that deep-sea sharks suck as the Six Gilled Shark meet mates seasonally by moving to warmer and shallower waters.

Frilled Sharks are prehistoric looking sharks that can be found in waters between 165 and 4,200 feet deep, and grow to be a maximum length of just over 6 feet. Scientists that Frilled Sharks may be responsible for reported “sea serpent” sightings because of their eel like appearance. Most Frilled Sharks are found in Japanese waters. Research shows that although 61% of a Frilled Sharks diet is made up of cephalopods, about 11% of their diet is made up of a variety of fast moving teleost fish. Most of what we know about their dieting is based off of examining stomach contents and other research. Nobody is known to have witnessed a Frilled Shark actually eat. Frilled Sharks breed all year long and an average litter consists of 6 pups.  (1)  Little information is known about Frilled Sharks, and a lot still needs to be researched and discovered.

1.  "Deep Sea: Frilled Shark." ReefQuest Centre for Shark Research Home. Web. 11 Apr. 2011. .