Getty Image / Mindy Schauer / Digital First Media / Orange County Register
A group of commercial fishermen hauled in a swordfish earlier this month that had been absolutely tormented by a cookiecutter shark. I saw a viral picture (below) of the swordfish about a week ago but just now came across the video as well.
The cookiecutter shark sure packs a powerful punch for a shark that maxes out at 22 inches long.
Their funny names was given due to their unique style of feeding. Cookiecutter sharks feast on fish and leave circular holes of missing flesh, as if someone took a cookie cutter like would be used in the kitchen, and punched out a cookie of fish flesh. Here’s that viral photo:
STUNNING (in the skin-crawling sort of way) attack by cookie cutter sharks on a swordfish! https://t.co/9AQtcFB8tx
“Fisherman Shocked After Reeling in Swordfish Covered in Strange Round Holes”
🗡️🐟🍽️🍪🦈😬 📸T.K. Walker pic.twitter.com/ogHzevJUf3— Dr. Solomon David (@SolomonRDavid) July 21, 2023
Video of swordfish hauled in after a cookiecutter shark attack:
In my head, once the swordfish was hooked it became a captive meal for the tiny cookiecutter shark who went about feasting on the fish. Though based on the number of bite marks, it is entirely possible this swordfish was attacked by more than one shark.
It is just an alarming sight after they’ve fed:
Based on this article from April 2022, cookiecutters love eating swordfish. Capt. Nick Stanczyk in Islamorada in The Florida Keys hauled in a large swordfish that had a massive chunk of its right side missing from one of these tiny sharks.
Fun Facts About Cookiecutter Sharks
Cookiecutters are found across the globe. They inhabit warm-temperate oceans including the Atlantic, Pacific, and Indian Oceans.
They dive DEEP every day and then come back up! Cookiecutter sharks approach the ocean’s surface (staying 300ft deep) from dusk to dawn, each day ‘migrating vertically’ up to 1.9 miles. They’ve been recorded at depths of up to 2.3 miles deep (3.7 km) but typically inhabit waters around 3,281 meters deep during the day before coming up to the surface.
The females are slightly larger than the males but both sexes are tiny. Male cookiecutters grow up to 16.5 inches long while females grow up to 22 inches.
Look at these teeth!
They are fearless! Cookiecutters, or cookie cutter sharks (it’s often written both ways), will feed on great white sharks and submarines, according to this video from Discovery.
Another fun fact is cookiecutter sharks glow in the dark! Their ventral surface emits a glowing bioluminescence that can be seen in the deep, dark waters.