A “ graveyard ” filled with hundreds of fossilised shark tooth has been found off the coast of Australia . scientist working on Research Vessel ( RV ) Investigator , a ship operated by Australian interior science agency CSIRO , were astonied by the find , which came from a small sphere of the seafloor over 5 kilometers ( 3.1 miles ) below the aerofoil .
The ex-wife - raciness - ing ( sad ) haul was brought on plank at the end of RV Investigator’srecent voyageto the Cocos ( Keeling ) Islands . The team of scientist , led by the Museums Victoria Research Institute , were performing the final trawl survey of the ocean trip when they unearth more than 750 fossilized tooth from a range of mountains of modern and prehistoric shark specie .
“ The teeth await to fare from innovative sharks , such as mako shark and white sharks , but also from ancient sharks include the immediate ancestor of the giant megalodon shark , ” say Dr Glenn Moore , Curator of Fishes at the Western Australian Museum , in astatement .
The stripey fellow here is the brand new hornshark species. Image credit: CSIRO-Frederique Olivier
The long - nonextant megalodon was the ultimate apex of the sun’s way predatory animal , occupyinga higher rung on the food chainthan any other marine animal , living or dead . Science is still undetermined on just how large this beast could grow , butrecent researchrevealed that it was able-bodied to ingest an 8 - metre - long ( 26 - foot ) mammal in only five bites , so that gives us some idea of its scale .
The teeth retrieve by RV Investigator likely belong to the megalodon ’s closest relation , a shark that mature to over 12 meters ( 39 pes ) in duration .
The excursion to the Cocos ( Keeling ) island only wrapped up in former November , but it was a ready turnaround for RV Investigator and its crew . A new survey of the Gascoyne Marine Park , off the glide of Western Australia , is already underway , and the breakthrough keep on coming .
This guy wasn’t shy about getting up close and personal with the camera equipment. Image credit: CSIRO (from video supplied)
“ early on in the voyage , we take in a outstanding small , stripey hornshark , ” tell Dr Will White , asharkexpert from CSIRO ’s Australian National Fish Collection . “ This species is unequalled to Australia , but it has n’t yet been described and named . The specimen we collect will be incredibly significant to scientific discipline because we ’ll use it to describe the species . ”
Hornsharks are behind - moving and elusive , preferring to hide among the rock and seaweed of the seafloor by day before come out to feed at night . All that is know so far about the new stripey specimen is that it live in water system over 150 meters ( 492 feet ) deep .
In fact , the Gascoyne Marine Park expedition has so far been a unquestionable shark - fest . The scientists have been using tow and distant photographic camera to capture the dissimilar coinage on picture show , and have even had to contend with some inquisitive individuals take bites out of the equipment .
“ The discoveries we make are n’t just limited to new specie . These voyages give us the opportunity to learn more about marine ecosystem , as well as mintage range , copiousness and behavior , ” said Dr John Keesing of CSIRO , current Chief Scientist on RV Investigator .
“ From small , new , bottom - dwelling shark , to massive ancient mega - shark that once roamed the sea , these biodiversity survey give us vital insights into the sprightliness in our ocean . ”
