Source: PopSci
An unprecedented species of deep-sea worm that can move like a “magic living carpet” has just been photographed by scientists. The new species was discovered near an underwater methane leak—where the powerful greenhouse gas escapes in bubbles from rocks or sediment on the seafloor—30 miles off the Pacific coast of Costa Rica .
Blurry image of this species, now named Pectinereis strickrotti by scientists, the first actually obtained during a dive to 3,280 feet in HOV Alvin sank into the ocean in 2009. But the team discovered the species again when it returned to a place where methane seeped in Alvin in 2018. “They swim slowly, but when they really want to move, it starts to ripple almost like a living magic carpet,” AlvinChief pilot Bruce Strickrott told PopSci.
Then, the research team carefully collected a number of specimens as well as enough photos and videos to formal description of the new species. PopSci said the team discovered that Pectinereis strickrotti about four inches long. Its elongated body is surrounded by a row of feathered, gill-tipped appendages called parapodia. These help it swim in wavy patterns reminiscent of a magic carpet. Although worms are blind – eyesight cannot be used in the dark at altitudes above 3,000 feet – they may have keen senses of smell and touch. Pectinereis strickrotti also boast exceptionally large jaws, although what these deep-sea worms eat remains a mystery.
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