A deep sea fish that uses gill-clogging slime to repel attackers has been caught on camera for the first time by Kiwi researchers.
Video footage from a study by Te Papa and Massey University researchers of New Zealand's deep sea animal diversity shows the hagfish - also know as the snot-eel - repelling sharks and other fish when bitten.
The attacking fish appear to gag on the mucus-like substance before releasing the hagfish and swimming away.
"Our video footage in New Zealand waters has proven that hagfish secrete slime at an incredibly fast speed when under attack by predators such as large sharks or bony fishes," said Te Papa's Vincent Zintzen, lead scientist on the project.
The footage, taken around Three Kings and Great Barrier Islands, also shows the hagfish is a capable hunter, not just an ocean scavenger.