A rare megamouth shark was caught off the coast of Japan last month and cut open in front of 1,500 onlookers.

The shark is on display at the Marine Science Museum in Shizuoka City, Japan, after it was caught off the coast of Japan last month at a depth of nearly 800m, according to WPTV.

It is only the 58th recorded sighting of the species ever, with the 4m, 680kg deepwater shark drawing a large crowd of 1,500 spectators for the dissection. Scientists hope that the information that they can learn from this specimen may help them better understand the species.

Named for its disproportionately large head and mouth, megamouth sharks can grow up to 5.5m, and the smallest of the three deep water plankton-eating sharks besides the whale shark and basking shark.

The species has only been caught on film three times, and was only recognised as a species in 1976 when one became entangled in the sea anchor of United States Navy ship AFB-14.