Latest Chimaera Stories

Ancient and bizarre fish named by California Academy of Sciences researchersNew species are not just discovered in exotic locales"”even places as urban as California still yield discoveries of new plants and animals. Academy scientists recently named a new species of chimaera, an ancient and bizarre group of fishes distantly related to sharks, from the coast of Southern California and Baja California, Mexico. The new species, the Eastern Pacific black ghostshark (Hydrolagus melanophasma),...

SEATTLE - There may never be a campaign to save the Puget Sound ratfish; no one really loves the ugly fish with rodent-like front teeth. But when a rare albino ratfish was found during a marine survey this past summer, scientists decided it was time to educate the public about the most abundant fish in local waters. The cartilaginous cousin of skates and rays is usually brown or black with white spots so it can blend in with the bottom of the sound, where it uses its rat-like teeth to crush...