The Elusive Megamouth Shark

As an American, Mexico is a wonderful country to
visit if you enjoy enthralling ecosystems and
love the ocean. The ocean is still a very
mysterious place too, as more people have
actually gone into orbit than have seen the
bottom of the ocean. Scientists are still
discovering more aquatic life every year, and
deep dives can lead to the knowledge of hundreds
of new sea creatures. If you don't believe in the
mysteries of the sea, the colossal squid is
another find that brings some truth to the old
legends of gigantic sea monsters. So keep an eye
out for the Megamouth Shark the next time you're
in the waters around Mexico, especially if you
wish to make the news.

With so few sightings, the megamouth seems to be
a very rare species; only 54 specimens have been
caught or seen, since it's discovery more than
35 years ago. One body is on display in Japan
and it has been studied by a few scientists, but
to date only three film recordings of the
megamouth in the ocean exist.. This animal is so
unique that it exists in its own taxonomical
family, Megachasmidae, and is the only species
in it.

To be sure the megamouth is a very unusual
seeming creature. It is brownish-black in color,
with a white belly, and has an asymmetrical tail.
The poor body structure of the shark would lead
one to believe that it's not a good swimmer; it
is quite large, despite its soft body, and it
can grow up to 18 feet long. The mouth is huge,
but has small teeth that protrude from a
rounded, broad snout. It actually consumes
plankton and jellyfish by swimming around with
its jaws open, filtering out the water once its
prey is trapped (regardless of it's
larger-than-life name).

Other than those physical characteristics,
little else is known about the megamouth shark.
It's estimated that it swims in the temperate
ocean zones all over the world and it has been
captured off the coast of several different
countries, including Mexico. A commercial boat
caught an immature female accidentally in 2006,
off the coast of Baja California, and this was
one of the first megamouths captured.

A male was captured in the same area as recently
as June, 2011. It was sent to the city of
Ensenada for examination and dissection. If
you're vacationing on the coast of the country,
keep an eye out for this very odd shark; some
previous sightings have mistaken it for a small
Orca whale. Keep your camera at the ready!


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