Freaky Fish: Group #5

DAMN YOU OLD!

Frillshark

Superficially, the frilled shark resembles a dark brown or grey eel, but the six gill slits identify it as a shark. The tissue of the gill slits protrudes somewhat, thus inspiring the common name. Its teeth are small and very sharp. It has been recorded at up to 2 m in length. They are found worldwide, but they are very rarely found in shallow water. They have been reported mainly near Norway, South Africa, New Zealand, and Chile. The sharks are usually found at depths of between 50 m and 1,500 m. They typically eat squid, other sharks, and deepwater bony fish. The frilled shark is sometimes referred to as a living fossil partially because the species has changed little since pre-historic times.

SAFETY LEVEL: Don't go deep sea diving dressed as a squid, shark, or bony fish, and you should be cool.

RockfishNot to be confused with Mr. Stonefish, of course!

Rockfishes are slow-growing and extremely long-lived. Black rockfishes become sexually mature at about 10 years of age and have been aged to 40 years. Yelloweye rockfish n are a longer-lived species, becoming sexually mature around 15 years of age and living in excess of 100 years. There have been unconfirmed ages of fish at 114 years. That means some of those rockfish were possibly alive during the Civil War and when the United States bought Alaska from Russia in 1867! Members of some species do not wander very far and actually have a very strong preference for a specific site. If a fish is captured and relocated elsewhere, it will quickly return to its original home site.

SAFETY LEVEL: Safe!

Nothing too creepo today! New Group coming Monday!

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