Scientists dropped 3 alligator corpses at the depth of 1.5 miles into the ocean for a study, but upon further investigation, they were shocked to find out that something massive devoured one of the gators completely.
A mystery massive predator devoured an alligator corpse after researchers left it underwater for an ocean study.
Researchers threw 3 dead reptiles at a depth of 1.5 miles in the Gulf of Mexico to understand how carbon-hungry creatures of the deep would react.
One alligator, which had a weight of nearly 39 kilograms, was pulled 30ft through the sand and was devoured by a mystery predator.
The rope was bitten completely through, allowing the mystery predator to carry away its meal.
The researchers returned to the drop zone 8 days after throwing the gators only to find nothing was left there.
Another alligator had its bones picked clean within a few weeks and a third one was devoured by deep-sea crustaceans.
Dr. Craig McClain, a professor at the Louisiana Universities Marine Consortium, organized the dropped.
Talking about the massive predator, Dr. McClain said, “We have no video evidence for what removed that alligator. Through a process of reasoning and exploring different options, we think that one of two species of shark is the most likely candidate.”
He added, “However, this remains a hypothesis at this time.”
It is believed that the predator might be a Greenland Shark or a Sixgill Shark.