Goblin Shark!

Goblin Sharks as seen by Kristen Campbell of the Polarkeet Den - click twice for detail!

Talking about weird Sharks (and here!), behold the Goblin Shark!
Looking at the following aquarium video, it looks kinda cute albeit weird and not at all deserving of the name.



But then, here comes the protractile business end!
Goblinesque indeed!

Cookiecutter Bite - the Paper!

Cookiecutter Shark. Sure doesn't look like much - but if one examines the detail, see below...

Cookiecutter Shark bite on a Pilot Whale

Remember the attack two years ago?

Now Randy Honebrink et al have published the report.
Nothing spectacular but still worth reading, be it only because this is the first ever documented attack by a Cookiecutter Shark on a living person, as previously documented bites have all been post mortem.

Also, check out this nice BBC video: this would be the second Shark employing Aggressive Mimicry to hunt I've heard of - or may the possibly bioluminescent (or not) Greenland Shark be another one?
Anyway, how cool is that!



BTW Randy's name did ring a bell.
Yes that would be that Hawaiian anti Shark tour dude - good to see him doing something constructive instead of wasting taxpayer money on spouting his anti industry BS!

Behold - the Bible!

Finally!
This is what every Shark aficionado has been waiting for - for a very very long time indeed!
The Sharks of North America continues the tradition of the iconic The Sharks of North American Waters of which I own, and still consult an original 1983 copy.
Dr. José I. Castro is a fisheries biologist with NOAA and a senior scientist at Mote Marine Laboratory and this book is truly Castro's labor of love. Having heard of his meticulous attention to even the smallest detail, I particularly look forward to admiring the book's artwork. From what I hear, the drawings are simply stunning and constitute the first ever collection of one hundred percent accurate depictions of those Sharks.

Required purchasing!

PS and here's David's Angular Roughshark in action!

The incredible White Sea

Alexander alerts me to this fabulous portfolio from the Russian underwater photography community blog uw_photo. You need to click on the pix to see them in all their glory and also, I highly recommend going through the whole portfolio in the blog - stunning!

The creatures are all from the White Sea, a hitherto rather obscure portion of Russia's Arctic Ocean. Isn't that where the Red October was berthed?

Anyway, secret sub bases or not, this looks like the next destination for lovers of the weird and wondrous! Not me, though, at least not until I hear more about its megafauna. Initial tales about "semi-stable bait balls" containing birds and Beluga Whales are certainly promising - but how about something a little more toothy guys?

And how about the cold? The creature comforts?
Sasha assures me of the existence of a "pretty decent diving center" and a small resort with a Russian touch: banya for after the dive, Russian cuisine and, last but not least by any stretch of the imagination: Russian entertainment!

As in, writes Sasha, "balalaika and dancing bears"!

Or, if yer really fortunate, you may even have the privilege of experiencing This!
Enjoy! (yes I know I know..)