Never-seen-before golden shark discovered in Costa Rica

September 13, 2025

A group of sport fishermen was casting lines off the coast of Tortuguero National Park in Costa Rica when one of their hooks caught a creature the likes of which no one had ever seen before: a six-foot nurse shark with white eyes and golden skin.

The astonished fishermen released the shark, but not before snapping a few photos to share with local scientists.

“At first, nobody could believe it. A lot of people said the picture must be manipulated,” said Daniel Arauz Naranjo, executive director of Costa Rica’s Rescue Center for Endangered Marine Species (CREMA) and a National Geographic Explorer.

But upon further investigation, Naranjo and his colleagues determined that the photos were not only genuine, but also that the shark’s coloration was the product of a rare skin condition known as albino-xanthochromism.

Albino-xanthochromism is a combination of two rare genetic conditions: albinism, which reduces the amount of melanin in the body and leads to pale skin, hair, and eyes; and xanthochromism (also known as xanthism), which causes unusually yellow or orange pigmentation in animals.

The golden shark found in Costa Rica was full-grown and appeared healthy at the time of its capture, suggesting that the shark’s unusual coloration hasn’t hindered its ability to survive.

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