Off the coast of Albania, a white rough shark was seen for the first time – that’s what the sharks of the genus are called Oxynotuswhich are under threat of extinction. The animal’s skin acquired a white color due to leukism, that is, a violation of the production of the melanin pigment due to a mutation. Previously, such a mutation was not observed in any representative of the rough shark family. Since the shark was completely healthy, scientists assumed that the pigmentation disorder did not affect the survival of deep-sea sharks. About this told Live Science.
What is special about this case?
Rough tipped shark (Oxynotus centrina) was caught near one of the islands near the coast of Albania at a depth of about 200 meters. The shark was pale with almost white spots on its tail, which differed from other representatives of its species, which usually have a dark gray-brown or even black color. She was discovered leukismwhich differs from albinism in that in animals the iris of the eyes remains colored and does not acquire a red color.
Previously, it was believed that white-colored animals at depth could more often become the prey of predators, but the discovery of a white representative of deep-sea sharks may change this perception. Until now, only 15 cases of pigmentation disorders were known among all species of deep-sea sharks, so in the new case, scientists hope to investigate how human activity affects the frequency of such disorders.
