Scientists have found ancient nail tooth shark fossils deep inside Mammoth Cave in Kentucky, revealing new information about a mysterious group of extinct predators.

Deep within Mammoth Cave, the world’s longest cave system, paleontologists have uncovered the remains of a never-before-seen species of ancient shark. Named Clavusodens mcginnisi, or McGinnis’ nail tooth,

Paleontologists at Mammoth Cave National Park have unearthed an ancient shark species previously unknown to science.

An ongoing Paleontological Resource Inventory discovered the new species, called Clavusodens mcginnisi, while collecting fossil teeth deep inside a formation with the cave system.

A new species of shark has been discovered a Mammoth Cave National Park, where fossil records have revealed more than 70 species of shark that swam in the ocean when this part of present-day Kentucky was under water about 340 million years ago.

It was identified from a collection of small fossilized teeth found within the Ste. Genevieve Formation, a layer of limestone and shale in Mammoth Cave that formed on the floor of warm ocean reefs during the geological period known as the Middle Mississippian.

The US National Park Service announced the identification of a new species of ancient shark, Clavusodens mcginnisi, discovered in Mammoth Cave National Park. The species name honors David McGinnis for his leadership in paleontological resource stewardship.

The Chipmunk Shark was believed to have swam along the ocean floor that is said to have covered much of central Kentucky during the Middle Mississippian period, officials claim.