According to Inuit myth, a urine-soaked cloth was once whipped
from an old lady’s hand and carried out to sea, where it turned
into a sea monster called “skalugsuak.” Of its legendary
peculiarities, skalugsuak lives for 200 years, has thousands of
teeth, weighs over a ton, eats caribou whole, has skin that can
destroy human flesh, and possesses—in place of eyes—living,
glowing creatures which lure its prey. But skalugsuak isn’t a
fable—it’s a real shark, whose flesh is so packed with urea that
it smells and tastes like urine. Commonly known as the Greenland
shark, the animal is the second largest carnivorous shark (after
the Great White), and the apex predator of the eastern Arctic.
When their carcasses have washed up, scientists have opened
their stomachs to find eels, sharks, beluga whales, dog, horse,
reindeer, and a lot of fish, and they’ve even been reported to
hunt caribou in the manner of a crocodile ambush. But despite
seeming like a pretty awesome research subject to tell your
friends about, very lit