An international team of researchers has discovered 31 new species of marine organisms off the coast of Brazil. Among the finds were transparent squids, comb jellies, siphonophores, deep-sea fish, and a fast-moving worm from the genus Tomopteris. This was reported by Popular Science on July 4.
The expedition lasted two weeks and took place in the southern part of the Atlantic Ocean. Scientists focused their attention on the so-called midwater zone—the area between the ocean’s surface and the seafloor. It lies approximately at depths ranging from 180 to 1,000 meters and remains one of the least studied ecosystems on the planet.
According to expedition leader Karen Osborn, this part of the ocean is the largest habitat on Earth and is teeming with organisms that science is only beginning to understand. She noted that deep-sea animals display an enormous diversity of survival strategies in conditions of pressure, darkness, and a lack of conventional energy sources.
Among the most unusual finds, researchers highlighted a new species of siphonophore that may belong not only to an unknown genus but also to a new family. Also recorded were transparent cephalopods, comb jellies, and fish larvae, for which scientists will still need to identify the adult forms.
Popular Science reported on March 15 that a team from the New England Aquarium’s aerial survey unit had documented blue whales twice in a short period in waters south of Nantucket Island, Massachusetts. The first whale was spotted on February 27 by researchers from the Anderson Cabot Center for Ocean Life at the New England Aquarium.
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