Researchers in New Zealand announced today that they have identified a new species of “ghost shark”, a fish capable of catching its prey in the deep waters of the Pacific Ocean.

Fish of this chimera species, otherwise known as the “ghost shark”, of the southwest Pacific Ocean, with a narrow nose were found in the Chatham area of ​​the Pacific, which stretches more than 1,000 kilometers east of New Zealand, the team announced National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research (Niwa), Wellington.

“Ghost sharks” are related to sharks and stingrays and their skeletons are cartilaginous. They feed on crustaceans that they find at depths that can reach around 2,600 meters.

“‘Ghost sharks’ like this one are mostly confined to the deep ocean,” noted Britt Finucci, who named the new species “Ghost Sharks” in tribute to her grandmother.

“Their habitat makes them difficult to study and observe, which means we don’t know much about their life cycle or where they rank in terms of endangered species, but that makes discoveries like this all the more exciting,” he said.

This “ghost shark” was previously thought to belong to a single species worldwide, before researchers discovered genetic and morphological differences from related species.