A New Jersey resident filmed a fin moving through a flooded street. A shark expert says it was the real thing

A powerful nor’easter left parts of the New Jersey shore underwater over the weekend, and one family’s camera caught something stranger than floating debris. A shark fin filmed cutting through a flooded New Jersey street belongs to a real animal, a smooth dogfish, according to Brobible. Dr. Greg Skomal of the Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries reviewed the footage for ABC News and identified the species.

The footage, posted by TikToker DadicationTV and filmed by the account owner’s sister, shows a distinctive fin moving against the current through the floodwater. The footage drew skepticism at first, as viral shark sightings during floods have a long history of being fake. Doctored images of a shark swimming down a suburban street circulated after Hurricane Sandy hit New Jersey, and fact-checkers have debunked similar clips for more than a decade. However, the smooth dogfish in this video appears to be real.

The Florida Museum lists cat-like eyes, triangular fins, and a notched tail as the smooth dogfish’s identifying features. Unlike the sharks most people picture, it has rows of flat, grinding teeth instead of sharp blades. Those teeth suit its diet, as the species feeds mainly on crustaceans and mollusks. Smooth dogfish usually measure about 48 inches long and are generally considered harmless to humans, as their teeth are built for crushing shells. The species is migratory, traveling long distances to hunt and breed.

This shark is a lot less scary than it looks

It typically lives in bays, inshore waters, and on continental shelves, preferring depths of less than 60 feet, though it has been found as deep as 655 feet. The museum notes that smooth dogfish can enter freshwater but cannot survive there for long. The species is also nocturnal, which makes a daytime appearance in a flooded neighborhood unusual.

The person who filmed the clip was thrilled once the fin turned out to be a shark, telling ABC News that “a baby shark was even better” than the fish they first suspected. New Jersey residents have tried to carry on as normal despite the flooding, and this visitor turned out to be far less threatening than some other viral shark sightings.

Earlier this year, a drone pilot captured a shark circling beneath a surfer at Seascape Beach in California, with the surfer only reacting after spotting the fin nearby. In that case, the shark eventually swam off without making contact.