“Besides, better to be around them when they’re sleeping than when they’re ready to feed!” “I find the best way to overcome my sheer terror of these creatures of the deep is to get up close and personal with them,” Kelly adds. That research found that crocs also sleep with one eye open. Kelly previously studied the behavior of crocodiles for his Honors thesis at Australia’s La Trobe University. Others must swim constantly to stay alive. Researchers note not every species of shark will have this ability. Study authors found that the draughtsboard shark - or “carpet shark” - is capable of staying stationary, resting on the sea floor, with their eyes wide open while asleep! This is a fish group which includes sharks and rays.Īlthough sharks may sleep, they’re making sure their deep-sea neighbors don’t find out. “The sharks showed a dramatic decrease in their metabolic rate and an obvious postural change following five minutes of inactivity, which demonstrated a distinct separation between periods of quiet wakefulness and sleep,” Kelly, from Simon Fraser University, says in a media release.Īlthough scientists know that many animals sleep just like humans, including other fish species, Kelly notes that the new study provides the first evidence that elasmobranchs sleep as well. They believe their findings support the idea that sharks conserve their energy through sleep, just like other species. Kelly and the team studied the sharks for 24 hours at a time, tracking their metabolic rates and behavior while swimming, resting, and possibly sleeping. Simply put, the sharks laid down on the ocean floor and went to sleep. Study authors found that the sharks had a lower metabolic rate and went into a “recumbent body posture” after being inactive for more than five minutes. After 5 minutes of boredom, sharks go to sleep Comparative sleep physiologist Mike Kelly and a team of researchers examined the metabolic and behavioral signals of sleep among New Zealand’s draughtsboard sharks. The new study is revealing the first pieces of evidence that sharks really do take a break from tracking prey and spend time sleeping or conserving energy. However, researchers say some of these sharks actually sleep with their eyes wide open! It turns out these predators love to grab a nap when there’s nothing going on. BURNABY, British Columbia - If you think ferocious sharks are always on the hunt for food, think again.
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