Off the rugged coast of New South Wales, Australia, a fisherman known as Trapman Bermagui reeled in a creature so bizarre it could have swum straight out of a nightmare. Lurking in the inky depths at 650 meters (2,132 feet) below the ocean’s surface, this deep-sea denizen left onlookers stunned with its bulging, blue-green eyes and a chilling, human-like grin packed with razor-sharp teeth. The image, shared by Trapman on Facebook, has sparked a wave of awe, fear, and heated debate about the true identity of this aquatic enigma.
The shark, identified by Trapman as a “deep sea rough skin shark,” boasts a sandpaper-like hide and an unsettling smile that seems almost too human for comfort. Its jagged teeth, protruding at odd angles beneath its upper lip, have drawn comparisons to everything from an evil cartoon villain to a creature sporting a set of poorly fitted dentures. Social media erupted with reactions, some calling the shark “evil incarnate,” while others couldn’t resist joking about its dental work.
The discovery has ignited a fierce debate among marine experts and enthusiasts alike, with speculation swirling about the shark’s species. Some suggested it could be a goblin shark, known for its grotesque, protruding jaws, or perhaps a cookiecutter shark, infamous for its cookie-shaped bites. Trapman, however, was quick to dismiss the cookiecutter theory, telling Newsweek, “Totally not a cookiecutter. It’s a rough skin shark, also known as a species of endeavor dog shark. These sharks are common in depths greater than 600 meters. We catch them in the wintertime usually.”
Experts have weighed in, each offering their own take on this deep-sea puzzle. Dean Grubbs, associate director of research at Florida State University’s Coastal and Marine Laboratory, believes the creature is likely a Centroscymnus owstoni, or roughskin dogfish, a type of gulper shark. “In my deep-sea research, we’ve caught quite a few of these in the Gulf of Mexico and the Bahamas, at depths between 740 and 1,160 meters,” Grubbs told Newsweek. Meanwhile, Christopher Lowe, director of the California State University, Long Beach Shark Lab, proposed it might be a deepwater kitefin shark (Dalatias lata), a species known to roam Australian waters.
Adding to the intrigue, Lowe suggested the possibility that this could be an entirely new species. “We discover new deepwater sharks all the time, and many look very similar to each other,” he noted. Brit Finucci, a fisheries scientist specializing in deep-sea sharks at New Zealand’s National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research, leaned toward classifying it as a gulper shark. “In the past, gulper sharks were targeted for their liver oil in New South Wales,” Finucci told Live Science. “They’re very sensitive to overexploitation, and some species are now highly threatened and protected in Australia.” Charlie Huveneers, a shark scientist at Flinders University, echoed Finucci’s assessment, further supporting the gulper shark theory.
The ocean’s depths remain one of Earth’s last great frontiers, a realm so alien it’s often compared to another planet. This latest catch only reinforces that notion, with its otherworldly features sparking both fascination and fear. As one commenter on Trapman’s post aptly put it, “The deep sea is another planet down there.” For those with thalassophobia—the fear of deep water—this shark’s eerie appearance is the stuff of nightmares, a reminder of the mysterious and often terrifying creatures that lurk in the abyss.
The debate over the shark’s identity may continue, but one thing is certain: Trapman Bermagui’s catch has pulled back the curtain on the deep ocean’s secrets, revealing a creature that feels like it belongs to a time long forgotten. Is it a known species, or could it be a relic of an ancient lineage, a thousand-year mystery waiting to be unraveled? For now, the ocean keeps its secrets, leaving us to marvel at the monsters it hides.