Five years after the first unconfirmed reports of spotting a group of eight sharks from a then-unidentified lanternshark species 0.5 to 0.9 miles under the ocean's surface, scientists were finally able to publish their findings on the newest shark on the block after half a decade of extensive analysis.
The paper, which was published online in the Journal of the Ocean Science Foundation on Dec. 21, also revealed the shark's name, the Ninja Lanternshark, which resulted in the discovery going viral within days. How exactly did the newest identified underwater predator get its name in the first place?
It turns out that the moniker can be credited to a group of teenagers.
Vicky Vásquez, a graduate student in marine science at the Pacific Shark Research Center in California and one of the lead scientists on the study, turned to four of her younger cousins and a group of high schoolers that she mentors to come up with a layman-friendly name for the newly-discovered lanternshark, whose scientific name, Etmopterus benchleyi, is a nod to Jaws book author, screenwriter and shark activist Peter Benchley.
After a series of brainstorming sessions, the scientist and her proteges came up with "ninja lanternshark," which Vásquez posits is a nod to its monochromatic coloring, which lends it stealthy, ninja-like abilities — in its marine adjacent world, at least.
"They started with 'super ninja,' but I had to scale them back," Vásquez said in an interview with Live Science.
Besides its unique nomenclature, the ninja lanternshark has also made its rounds on the Internet due to to its ability to be its own de facto flashlight, thanks to photophores (cup-shaped organs that have the ability to cast a small amount of light) located in its head.
The other importance of the name? When it boils right down to it, accessibility.
"It redefines our conception of sharks from being these massive fearsome things to these beautiful sometimes small, glowing animals," said Baruch College associate professor David Gruber to Live Science while commenting on the findings. "It shows us how many more mysteries there to uncover in the shark domain."
Via: Washington Post
