Rare Shark Species Resembles Spider-Man’s Venom When Hunting For Prey

Have you ever noticed how the most unusual animals seem to make the rounds on Twitter? It seems that there is another, and it is a shark that looks similar to Spider-Man’s Venom.

This isn’t the first time that the viper dogfish has shown up on social media. It first showed up on Twitter in 2018, but today, it is going viral all over again.

If you wanted to see this viral shark in the wild, you would have to head for the Western North Pacific Ocean. You could travel to Japan or Taiwan to be in that part of the world but it also stretches to Hawaii as well.

Seiryo-Maryu, a fisherman, first discovered the shark near Japan’s coast in 1986. Since then, there have only been a few viper dogfish sharks found, and the largest was a female that measured 21 inches.

Since there is so little known about these sharks, they aren’t sure how long they live or what they do in the deep. One thing they do think is that they are an older species and may have been around for some 42 million years.

These sharks are black but they do have cells on their heads and bellies that allow them to glow in the dark. Since they typically are found about 1000 feet under the surface of the water or even deeper, the light may come in handy.

Interestingly, the viper dogfish is thought to feed on lanternfish. Those lanternfish also live in the same depths and come up to higher areas to feed at night. The viper dogfish might follow the same pattern.

Photo: Wikimedia Commons

Although there are many interesting features in these little sharks, it is the jaw that really takes the cake. According to IFLScience, in order to feed, they extend their upper jaw out to snag their prey with their needle-sharp teeth. This allows them to swallow their prey whole.

People also love the look, which is similar to Spider-Man’s Venom. It is that look that caused the shark to go viral and now many people know about this unusual creature from the deep.

Protect the Planet

Help preserve vital habitat at The Rainforest Site for free!

Whizzco