Shark

Cookiecutter shark

Isistius brasiliensis

PacificAtlanticIndianSouthernArctic Found in 3 oceans

Tropical and warm waters of all oceans

Depth

Down to 3,700 m, rises at night

Size

About 50 cm

Diet

Chunks of flesh torn from large animals, squid

Zone

Twilight zone · 200 – 1,000 m

Key facts

• It tears round chunks of flesh, like a cookie cutter, from whales, tuna and dolphins.
• It has even bitten the sonar domes of submarines.
• Its glowing belly helps it hide.

And the sperm whale?

Minor danger: it leaves round scars on the skin of sperm whales.

Verified sources

1. FishBase – Isistius brasiliensis
2. ReefQuest Centre for Shark Research – Attacked by a Dogfish (cookiecutter)
3. FishBase, Isistius brasiliensis

In the game: To observe

In the same zone

Kitefin sharkDalatias licha Orange roughyHoplostethus atlanticus CoelacanthLatimeria chalumnae IcefishFamily Channichthyidae Boreoatlantic armhook squidGonatus fabricii Antarctic toothfishDissostichus mawsoni