Sharks Have Evolved To Walk: New Walking Shark Species Found Off Australian Coast

Off the coast of Australia and New Guinea, researchers have discovered species of sharks that actually walk on the bottom of the sea instead of swimming like we¡¯ve seen sharks do for years.

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Before you start freaking out, these species aren¡¯t the great white sharks, in fact, they're actually smaller shark species that feed on coral reefs underwater. In fact, scientists have already been aware of such species for some time now.

However, what was earlier presumed as just five species has now increased to nine, based on a 12-year long study from an international team of scientists from the University of Queensland (UQ), Conservation International, CSIRO, the Florida Museum of Natural History, and the Indonesian Institute of Sciences and Indonesian Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries (published in Marine and Freshwater Research).

The walking sharks have appeared in waters in the Northern Australian regions as well as some areas of New Guinea. They¡¯re not as gigantic as the great white sharks, instead, they are really small in size. Moreover, they¡¯re isolated in specific areas and don¡¯t really travel for longer distances.

Mark Erdmann

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Mark Erdmann, a co-author of the study, said in a statement to Conservation.org, "Instead of swimming around, these little bottom-dwelling sharks actually ¡®walk¡¯ using their pectoral and pelvic fins, which makes it easier for them to poke their heads under coral and rocks as they look for small fish, snails and crustaceans to eat. We¡¯ve found that most walking sharks spend their entire lives on the same reef where they hatched ¡ª never really moving more than a mile out of this radius. The only way they can get across deep water or move a significant distance would be if they are on a reef that is moving due to tectonic plates shifting."

Scientists reveal that the rapid evolution of walking ability in individuals or small groups is because of small groups of sharks moving to a new area. After they¡¯ve adopted the walking technique, future generations learn to walk from birth.

Mark Erdmann

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Erdmann added, "Speciation typically happens when individuals of a given species get separated from their main population ¡ª sometimes by walking or swimming or being carried away on a current to an isolated place. If they are lucky enough to survive and breed, eventually evolution will take this new population in a different direction and often leads to a new species."