Rare Prickly Shark Has Just Gone on Exhibit at the Monterey Bay Aquarium

By Kasia Deuel

Monterey, CA - A rarely seen prickly shark has just gone on exhibit at the Monterey Bay Aquarium. The rarely seen deep-water shark was collected last night (Tuesday, June 9) in Monterey Bay – only the 2nd time that one of these animals has ever been seen alive outside the wild. The shark will remain at the aquarium as long as it is in good health. The only other prickly shark exhibited anywhere in the world was exhibited at the aquarium in July 1990 and returned to the wild seven days later. 

The prickly shark arrived a day after the aquarium put on permanent exhibit three cowcod – one of the largest of all rockfish species. They have never been exhibited anywhere in the world until now – and are protected in the wild because their numbers have been severely depleted by overfishing.

When: Starting today, June 10

Where: Monterey Bay Habitats exhibit, Monterey Bay Aquarium

Description: For only the second time ever, an odd-looking deep-water prickly shark, Echinorhinus cookei, has been collected and placed on exhibit at the Monterey Bay Aquarium. The shark, found around the Pacific Rim at depths of to 3,000 feet, was collected at the head of the Monterey submarine canyon off Moss Landing – an area where the aquarium had supported research by a Moss Landing Research Laboratories graduate student who documented daily migrations of prickly sharks from the deep waters of the canyon to the shallows of the canyon head. 

The 6-foot, 8-inch male weighs 189 pounds. It is only the second of its species ever to be kept at an aquarium. Little is known about the biology and behavior of prickly sharks in the wild.

The prickly shark (related to the bramble shark) has rough, thornlike spines on the scales of its upper body. Its other distinctive features are two dorsal fins near the tale, rather than the single prominent fin associated with many sharks. A sluggish bottom-dweller, it feeds on fishes, other sharks, octopus, squid and crustaceans. It carries fertilized eggs inside its body but gives birth to live young.

The cowcod added on June 9 were collected by researchers at Hubbs-SeaWorld Research Institute in waters more than 1,000 feet deep, at Tanner Bank off San Diego, and donated to the aquarium. They are a fish of significant importance because they were overfished and are currently protected. They have never been exhibited at any aquarium before.

To view Monterey Bay Aquarium's web page on Zoo and Aquarium Visitor, go to: http://www.zandavisitor.com/forumtopicdetail-560-Monterey_Bay_Aquarium

Update

An uncommon deep-water prickly shark collected late Tuesday night was released in Monterey Bay about 15 hours after it was placed on exhibit at the Monterey Bay Aquarium. Staff biologists monitoring its condition on exhibit observed that it appeared to be too buoyant to swim easily, and decided that it was in the shark’s best interest to return it to the wild as quickly as possible.