Mysterious egg cases from the Western Australian Museum collection have led to the discovery of a newly identified white-eyed shark.
Mysterious Egg Case
According to Live Science, this new identification comes decades after a dead pregnant female was found and retrieved from Western Australian shores. ABC News explains that initially Brett Human, a researcher, spotted an unidentified shark egg during his period of volunteering at the WA museum. The defined T-shape ridges were only observed in one other shark species and were characterized as unique among the sharks in Australia that laid eggs.
This fresh collection was linked to similar eggs found decades earlier in Rowley Shoals in 1989. Initially, this was identified as belonging to the Apristurus genus. However, specialists were unable to pinpoint the shark's exact species.
Dr. Will White, the senior curator of the Australian National Fish Collection of the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization (CSIRO), explains that the process is long. He notes that they worked out that the shark did not align with any other species from the said genus and that it was frustrating that they did not have any actual animals to examine.
Upon examining databases of fish collections, Dr. White observed that the specimens were classified differently. As he looked even closer, he found out that it was actually a pregnant female. They then observed that this was the same egg case that they had encountered before and inferred that the species was entirely different.
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Newly Identified Bizarre, White-Eyed Shark
The new species has been labeled Aspristurus ovicorrugatus, and it has been described further in the Journal of Fish Biology. Aside from having unique eggs, A. ovicorrugatus was also found to harbor white irises.
Dr. Will White notes that there is only one other shark species from Papua New Guinea and New Caledonia that harbors such a distinct characteristic. He also explains that it is not common for deepwater species to have such a feature.
As per Live Science, Apristurus belongs to the catshark genus, which is commonly referred to as demon or ghost catsharks. It is among the world's most diverse genera of sharks, as it consists of roughly 40 known shark species.
Most sharks birth their own babies, but the remaining are egg-laying, oviparous species. Such mysterious egg cases, which are also referred to as mermaid's purses, tend to have long tendrils that enable them to get linked to rocks or seaweed.
ABC News adds that the demon catshark species was found in over 700-meter-deep waters. Dr. White explains that not many of them can be seen due to their deep-sea activity. Nevertheless, he is expecting more discoveries in the years to come.
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