A half-blind shark that’s typically thought to live in freezing Arctic waters, scavenge on polar bear carcasses and survive for hundreds of years, recently turned up in an unexpected place — a coral reef off #Belize. 

Devanshi Kasana, a Ph.D. candidate in @peclabfiu , was working with local Belizean fishermen to tag tiger sharks when the discovery was made. On the other end of one of their lines was a sluggish creature. It looked old — ancient, even. It had a blunt snout and small pale bluish colored eyes. All together, these clues led scientists to think it was a member of the sleeper shark family.

Kasana texted Demian Chapman — her Ph.D. advisor and Director of Sharks & Rays Conservation Research at Mote Marine Laboratory & Aquarium — to share the news. She also sent along a photo of the shark. Chapman’s response caught her off guard. He said it wasn’t a six gill. But, it looked a lot like a Greenland shark. 

After conferring with several Greenland shark experts, the final determi...