Greenland Shark Eats Polar Bear?

No, this is not one of your classic "man bites dog" headlines this is the real deal.

By the way, Greenland Sharks are rapidly becoming one of our all time favorites around here:

Scientists researching how far sharks hunt seals in the Arctic were stunned in June to find part of the jaw of a young polar bear in the stomach of a Greenland shark, a species that favors polar waters.

"We've never heard of this before. We don't know how it got there," Kit Kovacs, of the Norwegian Polar Institute, told Reuters of the 10 cm (4 inch) bone found in a shark off the Norwegian Arctic archipelago of Svalbard.

GEERG-You want to dive with the Greenland Shark?

Canada is fast becoming the "land of sharks" and none more sexy than the ice cold Greenland Shark. Turns out an estimated 100 million sharks live off Canada's shores...good luck seeing any of them as the waters here tend to run from pea soup to Beijing smog on a good day.

We blogged about this unlikely critter a few months ago and now would like to introduce you to the cutting edge guys who make shark diving with these cold water animals a reality:

The mission of GEERG is to study the Greenland shark and other Canadian shark species in their natural environment in order to better understand and protect them. The results of our work are made available to the scientific community and to the general public, in particular to sport divers, educational institutions, schools and museums.

Editors Note: Kudos to GEERG's webmaster. The video player is a nice touch and we're impressed with the mission statement. Overall great website, pro shark and hugely informative.

Shark Week Gets Dirty-Shark Vivisections?

Mike Rowe's upcoming 2008 Shark Week show will feature an "in depth" look into the mysterious Greenland Shark:

Shark gutting lures TV crew

It's enough to turn you off sushi for good.

In the name of science, University of Windsor's Aaron Fisk hauls monster Greenland sharks out of the frigid Arctic depths, then guts them to see what they had for dinner.

Somebody has to do it, says Fisk. And it's why Discovery Channel's Dirty Jobs came calling last spring.

Editors Note: The sharks and film crew were under the guidance of an ongoing research project headed up by the University of Windsor's shark team lead by Dr. Aaron Fisk.

Shark Facts-Greenland Shark

It's nice to learn something about sharks and today was no exception for us here at the office.

After watching a show last night about Greenland sharks that are eaten after being buried in the ground for a year (dis-gusting) we went looking for more info on these unlikely cold water critters.

Here's your fun facts for the day and a cautionary tale for divers in thick wetsuits who may or may not look like a seal.

1.The Greenland Shark is one of the largest sharks in the world, it rivals the Great White in size growing to over 21 feet in length and weighing up to 2000 lbs.

2.When the prey gets close the shark inhales and is able to suck food in from 3 feet away.

Editors Note: We know a few dive masters who can do that same trick in Florida.

Greenland Sharks "Monsters" of the Arctic

And you thought Canada was one of the least sharky places on the planet...think again. This week Canadian biologists are tagging and tracking this cold water "denizen of the deep" in an effort to understand more about them.

These are the same critters accused of stalking and graphically de-rubberizing young seals off the coast at Sable Island.

Canadian fish scientists are opening a window into the mysterious world of the Greenland shark -- the top predator in the Canadian Arctic about which almost nothing is known.

Except this, says Steve Campana of the Bedford Institute of Oceanography: "These are very, very strange sharks."

Its meat is poison. Its mouth is far under its body. It has almost no spine. It's so lethargic that it doesn't even snap at the scientists who hook it and attach a radio to it.

In the eastern Arctic "this is the apex (top) predator, the king of the food web, along with the polar bear. There's a sister species in the western Arctic. And as with any ecosystem, if you don't know anything about the apex predator, you're in a lot of trouble figuring out what's going on."