The ground shark is a giant shark reported from the Indian Ocean's Timor Sea, noted for allegedly lying on the seabed to ambush its prey.[1][2][3] Said to be larger than a great white shark (Carcharodon carcharias), which has an average length of about 14' to 16', unlike many sharks, it does not have a prominent dorsal fin. It lies pressed against the ocean floor, waiting to ambush its prey, which include other fishes and people.[4]
Karl Shuker suggests[5] that the ground shark may be a giant member of the mainly Australasian-Indonesian wobbegong family (Orectolobidae) of carpet sharks, bottom-dwelling predators which hide among rocks and ambush fishes which come to close. Normal carpet sharks are already known to attack swimmers, divers, and waders who get to close to them, with more than 50 attacks on record, none of them fatal. The two largest species, the spotted wobbegong (Orectolobus maculatus) and the banded wobbegong (Orectolobus halei) can reach a length of almost 10'.[4]
Notes and references[]
- ↑ Shuker, Karl P. N. (1997) From Flying Toads To Snakes With Wings, Bounty Books, ISBN 0-7537-1305-5
- ↑ Ley, Willy (1941) The Lungfish and the Unicorn: An Excursion Into Romantic Zoology, Modern Age Books
- ↑ Shuker, Karl P. N. "The Search for Monster Sharks," FATE 44 (March 1991)
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Eberhart, George M. (2002) Mysterious Creatures: A Guide to Cryptozoology, ABC-CLIO, Inc., ISBN 1576072835
- ↑ Shuker, Karl P. N. "A Supplement to Dr Bernard Heuvelmans' Checklist of Cryptozoological Animals," Fortean Studies, Vol. 5 (1998)