The epaulette shark, commonly found on shallow reefs of Australia and New Guinea, can walk for up to 30 meters on dry land using paddle shaped fins, and survive hypoxia – a deficiency of oxygen – for up to two hours. According to theguardian, the Florida Atlantic University (FAU) biologists, and their research partners in Australia, say these remarkable abilities enable the reef-dwelling sharks to survive increasingly hostile environments as conditions change.

“Such locomotor traits may not only be key to survival but also may be related to their sustained physiological performance under challenging environmental conditions, including those associated with climate change,” the study, published in the integrative and comparative biology journal, says.

 “Findings to date suggest that this species has adaptations to tolerate some, but perhaps not all, of the challenging conditions predicted for the 21st century.”

Sharksider describes their adaptation as "the epaulette shark can move about on their pectoral fins in a gait similar to walking. This movement is not limited to the ocean bottom but also the shore. The shark uses this ability to walk between separate bodies of water, letting them find suitable places where predators won’t hunt them."

However, as they need to stay out of the water, they have evolved to survive up to three hours at low or without oxygen – a condition called hypoxia. Unlike other creatures that suffer from lowered blood levels and heightened glucose requirements, these remain constant in this shark."

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Epaulettes are not the only shark species known to have ambulatory abilities. In 2013, researchers in Indonesia discovered a species that uses its fins to “walk” along the ocean floor, foraging for small fish and crustaceans.

A 2020 study by researchers at the University of Queensland and international partners, meanwhile, found at least nine species of shark used fins to walk in shallow water. Read more on this story here and here.