The scalloped hammerhead shark has a twin, scientists have discovered. And that discovery may show that scalloped hammerheads are rarer than first thought.
Scientists recently confirmed that endangered scalloped hammerhead sharks have a fishy twin ? a newfound species, still unnamed, that is distinct, yet very closely resembles the threatened sharks.
Skip to next paragraphThe case of mistaken identity indicates that scalloped hammerhead sharks?are even more scarce than once thought, according to some researchers.
Since it's very hard to tell the two species apart ? only differences in their DNA and number of vertebrae reveal their true identities ? it's likely that previous assessments of scalloped hammerhead sharks exaggerated their numbers because the counts likely included the look-alike sharks.
"It's a classic case of long-standing species misidentification that not only casts further uncertainty on the status of the real scalloped hammerhead, but also raises concerns about the population status of this new species," Nova Southeastern University Oceanographic Center professor Mahmood Shivji said in a statement.
Shivji's team at the Florida university first discovered the new hammerhead species in 2005 when examining the DNA of sharks thought to be scalloped hammerheads based on their physical appearance. A research team from the University of South Carolina independently confirmed the existence of the new species in 2006.
Combined genetic assessments from both institutions show that at least 7 percent of the sharks in U.S. waters originally thought to be scalloped hammerheads turned out to be the newly identified species.?
Now, researchers have found the unnamed shark, a so-called "cryptic" species, swimming in waters off the coast of Brazil, thousands of miles from where the species was initially discovered. The find indicates the cryptic species is widespread, and may be facing similar pressure as its nearly identical cousin.
Shark populations around the world have declined precipitously in recent decades, with millions of the iconic fish falling victim to the grisly practice of finning.
Shark fins fetch a high price in China, where they are used for shark fin soup.
Shark finning is largely banned in the United States, and many individual states have banned the trade and possession of shark fins. However, evidence from around the world indicates that finning continues to claim millions of shark lives each year.
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All finalists received a four-day trip to Las Vegas and attended the NASCAR Sprint Cup race courtesy of Caterpillar, sponsor of No. 31, driven by Jeff Burton for Richard Childress Racing.
| CSUB Notes 
I had the opportunity to hear Pennsylvania Insurance Commissioner Michael Consedine speak in Philadelphia about his state?s progress towards building an exchange the very next day (I was speaking later on the program). Pennsylvania is one of the 26 states challenging the federal health reform law (and even has a state constitutional amendment afoot that would bar implementation of the individual mandate in PA), but that hasn?t stopped the Keystone State from spending a $1 million planning grant and getting a $33.8 million implementation grant to kick their state health insurance exchange into high gear. (Nothing like playing both sides, eh?)