A Living Fossil With a Projectile Jaw
The goblin shark (Mitsukurina owstoni) is one of the most unusual sharks alive — a deep-sea species that has changed remarkably little in over 125 million years, earning it the label of “living fossil.” Its most distinctive feature is its highly protrusible jaw, which can extend rapidly forward — almost like a projectile — to snatch prey that the shark’s elongated snout would otherwise prevent it from reaching.
The Jaw Mechanism
Most sharks have protrusible jaws — they can push the jaw forward somewhat during a bite. The goblin shark takes this to an extreme. High-speed video of feeding goblin sharks shows the jaw extending forward by up to 8.6–9.4% of the shark’s total body length in approximately 322 milliseconds — faster than the human eye can follow. This slingshot mechanism allows the shark to capture prey without needing to make full-body contact, compensating for the blade-like rostrum (snout) that extends forward of its mouth.
The Rostrum and Electroreception
The goblin shark’s long, flattened snout is studded with ampullae of Lorenzini — electroreceptive organs that detect the weak electrical fields produced by living organisms. In the near-total darkness of the deep sea where it lives, this electrical sense is almost certainly more important than vision for locating prey. The unusual length of the rostrum may increase the effective range of these sensors.
Habitat and Distribution
Goblin sharks are found at depths of 270–1,300 meters in all major ocean basins, though they are most commonly encountered in the Pacific near Japan and in the Atlantic off Portugal and Madeira. They are rare in collections — fewer than 50 specimens have been studied in detail — and are almost never seen alive in their natural habitat. Most specimens are caught incidentally in deep-sea trawls.
Their pink coloration — unusual among sharks — comes from blood vessels visible through their semi-translucent skin. The pink fades quickly after death, making preserved specimens appear grey or white.
FAQs
Is the goblin shark dangerous?
It presents essentially no risk to humans given its extreme depth habitat. No unprovoked attacks on humans have been recorded.
Why is it called a goblin shark?
The Japanese name tenguzame means “tengu shark” — after a goblin-like creature from Japanese folklore with a long nose. Western scientists translated this loosely as “goblin shark.”