First Footage of Southern Sleeper Shark in Antarctic Waters

Scientists have captured the first known footage of a southern sleeper shark in the frigid depths of the Southern Ocean, challenging long-held assumptions that sharks do not inhabit Antarctic waters. The rare sighting occurred in January 2025, when a baited deep-sea camera recorded the animal swimming at approximately 490 meters below the surface off the South Shetland Islands near the Antarctic Peninsula.

The Minderoo-UWA DeepSea Research Center, based at the University of Western Australia, deployed the camera in a trench during a summer expedition to study deep-ocean life. The footage shows a substantial specimen, estimated at three to four meters in length, gliding slowly over a barren seabed in water temperatures hovering around 1 to 2 degrees Celsius. Researchers identified it as a southern sleeper shark, Somniosus antarcticus, based on its mottled skin, small fins, and lack of claspers, indicating it was likely female. A motionless skate, a shark relative, appeared nearby but showed no reaction to the predator.

"This is the most southerly report of a southern sleeper shark," said Heather Stewart, a marine geoscientist with the center, who can be heard in the video...