Three leopard sharks have made history after they were spotted engaging in a 'threesome' in the first known recording of the species mating in the wild.
The unusual ménage à trois was captured by Dr Hugo Lassauce, a researcher at the University of the Sunshine Coast, just off the coast of Nouméa in New Caledonia.
The groundbreaking observation involved one female leopard shark and two male leopard sharks who engaged in sexual activity that was 'over in minutes,' with the two males left completely drained of energy lying on the seabed floor.
As well as being incredibly interesting to witness, the sighting also provides invaluable knowledge for the conservation of the species, which are currently considered an endangered species.
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Dr Lassauce, who is working in collaboration with Nouméa’s Aquarium des Lagons, was snorkelling when he 'spotted a female with two males grasping her pectoral fins on the sand below me.'
"I thought ‘Something is going to happen – I’m staying right here with my GoPros,' an hour later, it finally happened," he said, as per the Guardian.
The whole event took just 110 seconds, with the first make taking 63 seconds and the second completing the act in 47 seconds.
Dr Lassauce continued: "Then the males lost all their energy and lay immobile on the bottom while the female swam away actively."
The footage he captured is the first time a leopard shark has ever been spotted mating in the wild, however this isn't as unusual as you might think, given that shark reproductive behaviour in wild sharks is almost entirely undocumented.
Dr Lassauce explained: "They're not like dolphins. Dolphins have been observed 'mating all the time.'"
According to marine ecology and evolution expert Dr Christine Dudgeon, who has worked with leopard sharks for more than 20 years, the footage could go a long way in terms of supporting management and conservation strategies for the species. She also noted that the New Caledonia area could be considered a critical mating habitat, based on what she saw in the video,
Speaking of the unusual sighting, Dudgeon said: "It’s surprising and fascinating that two males were involved sequentially on this occasion.
"From a genetic diversity perspective, we want to find out how many fathers contribute to the batches of eggs laid each year by females."
In a statement, the University of the Sunshine Coast said 'the threesome between two males and one female of the globally endangered species is delicately outlined in a paper just published in the Journal of Ethology.'
Topics: Animals, Science, Sharks, Environment, Weird
Emma Rosemurgey