SHARKS AND CHIMERAS, OH MY!!!!

 

Yesterday, we had the chance to meet Glorimar, a shark researcher here in Puerto Rico. Glorimar’s work is all about studying sharks and she particularly likes deep sea sharks., and she’s on a mission to identify a mysterious cat shark species that might be lurking in these waters. She’s built an incredible collection of specimens over the years some of them preserved so carefully they look like they’re still alive.

Whats real
ly cool is how she works closely with local fishermen. Instead of seeing dead sharks as waste, they save them for her, helping to create a deeper understanding of our local ocean life. It’s a great example of how scientists and fishing communities can work together for conservation.

I got to help out in a big way: dissecting one of Glorimar’s most recent treasures—a chimera! It was honestly one of the coolest things I’ve ever done. Glorimar let me carefully cut open the body cavity and remove the reproductive organs. It was a real eye-opener to see how much detail goes into identifying species—the shape of a fin, the number of gill slits, the lateral line. I left the lab buzzing with excitement (and a bit of shark smell) and with a much bigger appreciation for the work people like Glorimar do.