It is believed by the scientific community that there are number of species of animals, insects, birds and other living organisms on earth that haven’t been discovered yet. Here is a piece of news that is a testimony to this theory. Off the cost of Indonesia marine biologists recently came across a shark that walks on the ocean floor. Yes you heard right, it actually walks on the seabed using its fins. This new shark species christened Hemiscyllium Halmahera walks around searching for smaller fish and crustaceans that it feeds on.
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The name given to this shark is in honor of the island of Halmahera near which this shark was found. These sharks have made the coral reef their home and usually do not stray much from it. The female of the species even lays its eggs in the reef. These sharks that grow up to 68 centimeters in length pose no danger to human beings. The fact that these sharks pose no danger to human beings should prompt more people to come forward and help conserve these rare species of sharks.
There are in all 9 species of sharks that can walk of which 6 are found in Indonesian waters. Sadly, all of them are on the brink of extinction, which is why a special initiative is needed to protect them. Indonesia has realized the need for protecting these rare species and has initiated a program for their conservation. Interestingly, Indonesia in all boasts of 218 different species of sharks and rays, which makes it all the more imperative that it takes the lead in conserving these rare and beautiful marine creatures.
One way that the country is trying to raise money for its conservation efforts, is to promote marine tourism. This might be an effective way to not only raise money, but also spread a global awareness about these wonderful creatures. Regarding this issue, Fahmi from the Indonesian Institute of Sciences was quoted as saying “This is the third walking shark species to be described from eastern Indonesia in the past six years, which highlights our tremendous shark and ray biodiversity.“
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“We now know that six of the nine known walking shark species occur in Indonesian waters, and these animals are divers’ favorites, with excellent potential to help grow our marine tourism industry” Fahmi further added.
