Two new species of fish were discovered in New Zealand by a pair of professors and a graduate student from Pennsylvania's Millersville University. The fish, from the order Chimaeriformes were discovered during a two week trip funded by the National Museum of New Zealand Te papa Tongarewa and a Tree of Life grant from the National Science Foundation.
The fish, of the chimaeroids family, are related to sharks. Dr. Dominique Dagit, Dr. James Cosentino, and California graduate student Jenny Kemper examined a collection of fish in the chimaeroids family and Dr. Dagit completed the naming of all unknown species of chimaeroids fish that are native to New Zealand. According to the press release put out by the university, Dagit has named 15 fish in the chimaeroids family, comprising 31 percent of all known chimaeroids in the world. Dr. Dagit and graduate student Kemper co-wrote three chapters in the as yet released book, "Fishes of New Zealand."