By Balitang America

June 29, 2011

Scientists discovered more than 300 new species that includes a puff-up shark that fills itself up with water, in an expedition of Philippine waters. Researchers from the University of the Philippines, the Philippine National Museum and the California Academy of Science conducted the 42-day expedition around Luzon, the largest island in the archipelago.

The deep-sea “inflatable shark” they discovered swells up by sucking in water to scare off predators.

“We found new species during nearly every dive and hike as we surveyed the country’s reefs, rain forests, and the ocean floor,” Terry Gosliner, leader of the 2011 Philippines Biodiversity Expedition, said in a statement.

The expedition also discovered deep-sea armored corals “which protect themselves against predatory nibbles from fish by growing large, spiky plates,” said Gosliner, who is also dean of science and research collections at the California Academy of Sciences.