The fearsome looking critter you see about is not some sort of beast that traveled through the rift to attack our cities, it’s actually the rare goblin shark. This nasty looking fish was snagged Captain Carl Moore off the coast of Key West, FL., with the last recorded sighting by researchers back in 2000.
The goblin shark is known for their mouths that open up to reveal “razor-sharp teeth resembling the creatures in the sci-fi film, Alien.” From NBC:
Goblin sharks have been found in the Pacific, off the coasts of Japan and California, and in ocean depths of up to 5,000 feet. The latest sighting has surprised researchers.
“This is a very rare finding,” John Karlson, a research biologist at NOAA, told NBC News on Saturday. “We don’t know very much about these animals.”
Karlson said they can range up to 10 to 13 feet, although Moore’s goblin shark was around 18 feet.
I assume it also spits acid and has a razor sharp tail whip, sort of like those raptor talons from Jurassic Park. I can only imagine what the guy who reeled this sucker in must’ve felt:
Moore said he was flabbergasted by his find.
“When it came up, I didn’t know what it was,” Moore told NBC News. “I didn’t measure him because his head was slashing around, and he had some mean-looking teeth and I didn’t want to get caught up in those.” (via)
You know, I bet any other fisherman would’ve just kept the goblin and took the glory. And the food. But Moore let it go and proved to be the better man. I on the other hand would’ve mounted the beast and used it to scare away children at Halloween. Little bastards.
(Via NBC)