A genus of sharks characterized by having seven gill openings on each side of the head, instead of the typical five.
From Greek 'hepta' (seven) plus 'branchia' (gills). Named in scientific taxonomy by early ichthyologists studying unusual shark anatomy.
Most sharks have five gill slits, but Heptranchias sharks broke Nature's usual rule with seven—these primitive sharks are living fossils that tell us how gills may have looked when sharks first evolved hundreds of millions of years ago.
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