They noticed the dorsal fin of a large, short-fin mako shark with an orange patch on its head. This led the team to launch a drone to get a closer look at the animal. In doing so, the researchers ...

A mysterious sighting of an octopus riding on top of a short-fin mako shark in New Zealand's Hauraki Gulf. Credit: Wednesday Davis / University of Auckland We know the ocean is strange.

That was the case when a team from the University of Auckland in New Zealand noticed a 10-foot-long shortfin mako shark adorned with an unexpected passenger. “What was that orange patch on its head?

They are the largest octopus in the Southern Hemisphere. Even riding a huge predator like the shark, a shortfin mako, this hitchhiker occupied a lot of room. “You can see it takes a fair amount ...

The research vessel was near the northern coast of New Zealand, studying shark feeding, when they spotted a large short-fin mako shark just underwater. The patch of orange on top of its head ...