And now for something completely different.

Meet Cuddles, the big-nosed, red, furry shark that hops like a frog.

New forms of marine life are usually found in such waters as those around the Great Barrier Reef or in the Red Sea. But a new species of "furry" shark, which hops like a frog rather than swims, has popped up in a German aquarium.

The 70-centimetre female shark, nicknamed Cuddles, is covered in red hairy bristles, has big nostrils and an extra gill that set her apart from the 405 known shark species. According to the many marine biologists who have flocked to inspect Cuddles, her fins are smaller but more muscular than those found on similar-sized sharks. She claps them together in order to hop across the bottom of her tank in the Sea Star aquarium in Coburg.

"She leaps over the seabed like a frog rather than swimming gracefully like most sharks," said Peter Faltermeer, a marine biologist and the aquarium's curator. [...] "This is the first time a totally new species of shark has been found, not in the wild but in a fish tank," he said. "It is amazing."

He believes that because Cuddles does not have sensory organs at the front of the head, as do other sharks, she uses the bristles that cover her from head to tail to provide an early warning of possible predators, or prey. "She lets algae grow without trying to rub it off, which is gradually turning the bristles bright red," said Mr Faltermeer. "We believe the bristles pick up movements in the water, and the algae help to thicken the bristles and lengthen them."

Unlike other sharks, the irises of Cuddles' eyes are fixed open. She also has very wide nostrils and a fifth gill to filter plankton. "Other sharks filter plankton, but these don't also chase fish," he said. "But Cuddles has a full set of teeth and the main ones are extraordinarily long. He believes the shark has adapted to hunting in the dark - probably in a cave rather than in deep water. Most of the biologists believe Cuddles came from somewhere around southern Africa. "The eyes that are not designed to cope with light, the all-body hair, the wide nostrils and the way she uses her fins more like legs, all indicate she is used to a dark cave environment."

Now they have to figure out where she is from, so that a male can be found to breed with her. When regular nurse sharks that share the tank with her laid eggs, she ate them.