During a robotic exploration of the ocean's abyssopelagic zone, scientists found mysterious jet-black eggs attached to a rock.
After studying the eggs and examining their DNA, the team discovered that they belonged to a flatworm, a creature usually found in shallower waters, previously unknown to science.
Even though this flatworm species lives in a much deeper environment, early research suggests it's similar in appearance to its shallow-water relatives.
An old saying among oceanographers and explorers is that we know more about the surface of Mars than the depths of our own oceans. Covering over 70% of the Earth's surface, oceans are incredibly challenging to study, especially for creatures that don't have gills.
Recently, scientists from Tokyo University and Hokkaido University in Japan came across some mysterious jet-black eggs while using a remotely operated vehicle (ROV) in the Pacific Ocean. These eggs were found at a depth of about 6,200 meters, the maximum depth of the abyssopelagic zone, which is the deepest layer of most of the ocean. Discoveries in this zone are crucial because we know very little about the life cycles of creatures living there.
Not sure what these eggs were, marine researcher Yasunori Kano, operating the ROV, decided to retrieve a sample for further analysis. Although most of the eggs were empty, at least four remained intact. These were sent to a team of biologists at Hokkaido University, who discovered that they were cocoons containing flatworms.
Keiichi Kakui, one of the researchers, described the moment of discovery: "When I first saw them, I thought they may be protists or something. Under a microscope, I cut one open and found fragile white bodies inside, realizing it was the cocoon of flatworms." This was a surprising find because abyssal flatworms have never been discovered at such depths before.
Further examination confirmed that these creatures were a new species of flatworm. Although they represent the deepest known record of free-living flatworms, they appear similar to their shallow-water relatives and show no significant developmental differences.
While much about the ocean's abyss remains unknown, discoveries like this shed light on its mysteries.
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