128Canopy Blog

A Mexican hornshark was captured in Costa Rican waters making it the first of its kind to be reported found in local waters.  The Mexican hornshark (Heterodontus mexicanus) is a rare shark species that is normally found in Mexican waters and reproduces by laying eggs in rocky bottoms.

A local artisan fisherman from Tarcoles, in Costa Rica’s Central Pacific Coast, had embarked in one of his regular trips to a sector in front of Herradura Island.  Luis Angel Rojas usually heads out to this area to fish for snapper and bass and has come across the Mexican hornshark before but would always throw it back into the sea because it had no commercial value to him.

It wasn’t until one of the local biologists from the Marine Turtle Restoration Program (PRETOMA) mentioned to Luis Angel that the Mexican hornshark was a rare species which reproduced by laying eggs.  The fisherman then caught one and brought it to the scientists on shore.

The species lays its eggs in a golden spiral form and the baby sharks normally hatch until after a year of development.  The Mexican hornshark lives near the coast and is typically found in rocky bottoms at a depth of 65 to 165 feet.

The hornshark normally doesn’t exceed the length of 70cm. and is equipped with razor sharp teeth and a strong hide.