Snake-like shark from dinosaur era might scare you out of sea

Portuguese scientists have discovered a new kind of terrifying shark in the ocean with a snake-head and 300 teeth, dubbed as ‘a shark from the dinosaur age’.

The prehistoric shark, called the frilled shark, is one of the oldest – almost present since 80 million years – and reportedly the creepiest one still thriving under the ocean waters.

The discovery was made when a team of European Union scientists were searching in the depths of Atlantic Ocean to find a way to ‘minimize unwanted catches in commercial fishing’. The group, however, ended up catching this primeval and rare species.

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According to The Washington Post, the shark was named after its gills. The gills are frilly with fluffy edges. The largest the frilled shark can grow is up to six feet long that is the size of a tall man. The creature was caught at a depth of 700 meters in waters.

The shark has a long, slim and a body similar to a snake’s. Though its head is small like a snake, the inside contains 300 needle-sharp teeth lined in 25 rows. With rapid attacks, the shark sinks the sharp teeth into its prey that can be other sharks, octopuses, fishes or squids.

The reason people are not much aware about this bizarre creature is because of its rare contact with human as it lives deep down the oceans, off the coasts of Japan, New Zealand and Australia. The scientists called the frilled shark as a ‘true living fossil’ due to the remains that were discovered 80 million years ago. This makes it one of the rarest species of old times to still thrive today, reported BBC News.