5,000 new species discovered in the Clarion-Clipperton Zone of the Pacific Ocean.
These strange and wonderful creatures include worms, coral and sea cucumbers known as “gummy squirrels and bears”.
Scientists like Muriel Rabone have brought these creatures together for the first time. There are plans to mine deep-sea metals in the area, which could endanger the natural environment of the area.
Ninety percent of the organisms found in research are completely new to scientists.
Check out some species below!
The deep-sea gummy squirrel is a strange creature found on the ocean floor.
Scientists have sent remote-controlled vehicles to the bottom of the Pacific Ocean, where they’ve found species like this carnivorous sponge. Like a box being dragged across the ocean floor!
Then they made a huge list of all the creatures they found, such as deep-sea sea cucumbers.
This is the first time such a list has been made of organisms that live in the region — such as this ping pong sponge. Now that they know what lives there, they can begin to understand how to approach and protect these creatures.
This sea anemone is one of 5,000 new species of animals discovered. But scientists think there’s more to discover.
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