Scientists discover a new deep-sea predator at a depth of 7900 meters
Kyiv • UNN
Scientists from the United States and Chile have discovered a new species of amphipod Dulcibella camanchaca in the Atacama Trench. The 4-cm-long predator preys on smaller amphipods and is the first active predator found at such a depth.
In a new study, researchers from the United States and Chile have discovered a new deep-sea predator. It was named “Darkness,” UNN reports, citing Sciencealert .
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In a new study, researchers from the United States and Chile have introduced a species of fast, ghostly predators from the Atacama Basin off the west coast of South America.
The creature, called Dulcibella camanchaca, is an amphipod, a diverse group of shrimp-like crustaceans that typically feed on detritus or search for food in marine or freshwater bodies of water. The researchers found four individuals of this species at a depth of 7902 meters.
According to the authors of the study, Dulcibella camanchaca is the first large, active carnivorous amphipod found at this depth. This discovery in the Hadal Zone hints at how little we still know about marine subterranean worlds.
The study of extreme habitats on Earth also informs the search for alien life on ocean satellites, such as Enceladus. However, for now, the discovery of this unique animal is big news in itself.
All the other amphipods found in the darkest depths of the Atakam Trench are still a significant discovery.
D. camanchaca is not only descended from a previously unknown species, but its morphology and DNA suggest that it is also a newly discovered genus.
Two similar genera of waders are named after characters from the 17th-century Spanish novel Don Quixote, so the team continued this tradition by naming the novel genus Dulcibella after a character named Dulcinea del Toboso. The name of the species camanchaca was translated as “darkness” from the indigenous languages of neighboring western South America, the researchers note. They chose it to denote the black depths in which this creature prowls.
Dulcibella camanchaca is a fast-swimming predator that we named after “darkness” in the languages of the Andean region to refer to the deep, dark ocean from which it comes
The white coloration of amphipods is a standard coloration in dark habitats such as caves.The size of this find was just under 4 centimeters. Unlike less agile amphipods, it darts nimbly in pursuit of food.
D. camanchaca hunts and feeds using specialized predatory appendages called gnathopods. Food options are limited in ocean trenches, but this species appears to prey on other, smaller amphipods.The new species was discovered during a 2023 research expedition that is part of the new Chilean Integrated Deep Ocean Observing System. The researchers collected the specimens using a lander or untethered platform that ferries scientific equipment to and from the Gadal Zone.
The collaborative effort and integrated approach in this study confirmed Dulcibella camanchaca as a new species and highlights ongoing biodiversity discoveries in the Atacama Basin
This discovery underscores the importance of continuing deep ocean exploration, especially in the outskirts of Chile. More discoveries are expected as we continue to explore the Atacama Trench
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