A novel species of “ghost shark” has been identified in the waters off the eastern coast of New Zealand.

A new species of “ghost shark,” a rare type of fish that is difficult to observe due to its preference for habitats at great depths in the Pacific Ocean, has been identified by scientists in New Zealand. Additionally, these creatures are colloquially referred to as “spookfish” or “chimeras.”

They are closely related to sharks and rays. Unlike most fish, they lack scales and have cartilaginous skeletons. Dr. Brit Finucci, one of the scientists who discovered the Australasian narrow-nosed spookfish, described the find as “exciting.”