A resident of Costa Rica has caught what’s thought to be the first orange shark.
According to USA Today, the uniquely colored fish was snagged by hotel owner Garvin Watson, who called the discovery “incredible.”
“We couldn’t believe what we had in front of us, an orange shark that looked like an alien,” Watson says.
Indeed, the shark looks like it swims in Cheeto dust instead of water due to a pigmentation phenemenon called “xanthism.” It also has all-white eyes, while sharks usually have black iris.
Researchers call the shark “the first scientifically documented case of total xanthism in the species and the first record from the Caribbean Sea.”