Hoof prints, previously thought to be traces of a legendary underwater animal, were found on the seabed near the coast of New Zealand.

Researchers from New Zealand’s National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research (NIWA) have discovered a scientific explanation for this phenomenon; This is related to the behavior of deep-sea grenade fish.

The prints are triangular in shape and fit perfectly into the muzzles of some species of Coelorinchus grenadiers. The grooves in the sand tracks are likely the result of bites from the feeding behavior of these fish. Bombers chewed through silt and sucked out their prey, usually using central bite zones, which are rare at depths greater than 450 meters.

This discovery allows us to better understand the eating habits of mice and identify critical habitat and feeding grounds of grenadiers.

Bombers play an important role in the ecosystem of deep-sea corners, and therefore such a discovery is rare and spectacular.

NIWA researchers suggest that the fish hunt by sticking their noses into the mud and sucking out their prey with their downward-facing mouths. Source