‘Very rare’ shark that can live for a whopping 500 years washes up on beach

Nypost · Apr 14, 2026 · 403 words · By Ben Cost

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What to know about ‘Very rare’ shark that can live for a whopping 500 years washes up on beach

‘Very rare’ shark that can live for a whopping 500 years washes up on beach It’s the tale of the old man-eater and the sea.

Claims checked 10

Techniques found 0

Topics 0

Coverage spectrum

Coverage gap: Low Left coverage

Left0%

Center80%

Right20%

5 sources compared across this story cluster. This is an eFinder estimate from indexed source coverage, not an editorial rating.

What happened

‘Very rare’ shark that can live for a whopping 500 years washes up on beach It’s the tale of the old man-eater and the sea.

Why it matters

Beachcombers in Ireland were taken aback after stumbling across the carcass of an ancient Greenland shark — a massive predator that can live for 500 years.

Common ground

Hammad Chaudhry and James Winters O’Donnell had been strolling along the shore in Finisklin, County Sligo, when they happened upon the ferocious-looking flotsam, marking the first time the species had been stranded in the Emerald Isle, Jam Press reported.

Perspective signals

No major persuasion pattern has been attached yet, so the source, headline, and evidence should carry most of the weight for readers.

Follow-up questions

What concrete event or decision sits underneath the headline: ‘Very rare’ shark that can live for a whopping 500 years washes up on beach?
What evidence would most clearly confirm or weaken the claim that One of the world’s largest sharks, this massive sea beast can grow to be over 20 feet long — nearly the length of a U-Haul truck?
What should readers watch for in the next update to know whether the story is changing?

open_in_new Read the original article: https://nypost.com/2026/04/14/science/rare-shark-that-can-live-for-a-shocking-50…

fact_checkClaims Checked

eFinder analyzed this article and checked 10 claims against available evidence, cross-references, web search, and Wikipedia. Here is what the fact-checking layer found.

help Insufficient Evidence 7

check_circle Corroborated 2

info Single Source 1

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Claim 1: “One of the world’s largest sharks, this massive sea beast can grow to be over 20 feet long — nearly the length of a U-Haul truck”

INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE

No evidence was found in web search results, cross-references, or Wikipedia entries to support the 20-foot length claim.

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Claim 2: “Rotted basking shark, dubbed Hakarl, is a delicacy in Iceland”

INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE

No evidence was found in web search results, cross-references, or Wikipedia entries to support the Hakarl delicacy claim.

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Claim 3: “The Greenland Shark is the longest living vertebrate in the world with a life span of several centuries; the oldest recorded specimen was over half a millennium in age”

INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE

No evidence was found in web search results, cross-references, or Wikipedia entries to support the claim about the oldest specimen being over 500 years old.

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Claim 4: “This particular specimen was believed to be 150 years old”

INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE

No evidence was found in web search results, cross-references, or Wikipedia entries to support the 150-year age estimate.

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Claim 5: “Beachcombers in Ireland were taken aback after stumbling across the carcass of an ancient Greenland shark”

SINGLE SOURCE

Only one web search result specifically mentions a Greenland shark washing up on the Irish coast for the first time. Other sources provide general information about Greenland sharks but do not confirm the Irish stranding.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Greenland is an autonomous territory of the Kingdom of Denmark and is the largest of the kingdom's three constituent parts by land area, the others being Denmark proper and the Faroe Islands. Citizens…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greenland

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The northern wheatear or wheatear (Oenanthe oenanthe) is a small passerine bird in the Old World flycatcher family. It is the most widespread member of the wheatear genus Oenanthe in Europe and North …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Northern_wheatear

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The United States has discussed obtaining Greenland from Denmark since the 19th century. There were talks within the US federal government about purchasing Greenland in 1867, advocated by secretary of…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Proposed_United_States_acquisi…

+ 3 more evidence sources

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Claim 6: “The stranding has perhaps provided a unique opportunity to glean more insight into the elusive beast, which resides some 7,000 feet down in the frigid waters off the Arctic and North Atlantic”

INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE

No evidence was found in web search results, cross-references, or Wikipedia entries to support the 7,000-foot depth claim.

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Claim 7: “Although their flesh is poisonous when fresh, it can be eaten after being fermented underground and dried”

INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE

No evidence was found in web search results, cross-references, or Wikipedia entries to support the fermented shark flesh claim.

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Claim 8: “A very rare shark that can live for a whopping 500 years washes up on beach”

CORROBORATED

Multiple independent sources confirm the Greenland shark's lifespan of 250-500 years. NOAA's National Ocean Service states 'at least 250 years' and 'may live over 500 years', while a web article explicitly states 'live up to 500 years'.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Since 2025, the second Donald Trump administration of the United States has sought to annex Greenland, an autonomous territory of Denmark (itself in the European Union), triggering an ongoing internat…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greenland_crisis

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+ 3 more evidence sources

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Claim 9: “The Greenland Shark preys on a variety of critters, including char, wolf eels, small sharks, and on occasion, seals and porpoises”

INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE

No evidence was found in web search results, cross-references, or Wikipedia entries to support the prey list claim.

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Claim 10: “The specimen has since been collected by the Natural History Museum for further examination”

CORROBORATED

Two web search results independently state the specimen was collected by the Natural History Museum. One explicitly mentions 'collected by the Natural History Museum for further examination'.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — This is a list of natural history museums whose exhibits focus on the subject of natural history, including such topics as animals, plants, ecosystems, geology, paleontology, and climatology. Some mus…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_natural_history_museum…

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The American Museum of Natural History (AMNH) is a natural history museum on the Upper West Side of Manhattan in New York City. Located in Theodore Roosevelt Park, across the street from Central Park,…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Museum_of_Natural_His…

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The history of Greenland is a history of life under extreme Arctic conditions: currently, an ice sheet covers about eighty percent of the island, restricting human activity largely to the coasts. The …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Greenland

+ 3 more evidence sources

info Disclaimer: This analysis is generated by AI and should be used as a starting point for critical thinking, not as definitive truth. Claims are verified against publicly available sources. Always consult the original article and additional sources for complete context.