Hydrothermal Vent Exploration in Antarctic Reveals Yeti Crabs, Ghost Octopi

A recent exploration of hydrothermal vents in the deepest seas around the Antarctic has thrown up several new species – including hairy-chested Yeti Crabs and Ghost Octopi!

Expedition leader and professor of zoology at Oxford University Alex Rogers described the environments discovered by the study as “like a sight from another planet.” New species of anemones and predatory sea stars were also found in these deep-ocean cubbyholes.

This expedition is the first ever to the Antarctic’s deep sea vents, a source of warm water that emanates from the seafloor. Many of the new beasties found at these vents have never been spotted at equivalent vents in other oceans, and the sheer volume of creatures has surprised scientists – one picture from the study (above) shows thousands of Yeti Crabs sprawled around one vent – up to 600 per square meter! Rogers told LiveScience:

“To see these animals in such huge densities was just amazing. We were absolutely stunned to see the animal communities, because they were so different from the hydrothermal vents seen elsewhere.”

Before now, Antarctic deep-sea vents had never been located, with conditions in the Southern Ocean far harsher than in temperate climes. Jon Copley, a UK professor of earth and ocean science admitted to LiveScience, “It’s only quite recently that we’ve been able to be bold enough, really, to head to the poles.”

Indeed, it was only in 1999 that the science community had an idea hydrothermal vents may exist around the Antarctic, after deep-ocean mapping in the area revealed possible vent output in the water column over the East Scotia Ridge in the Atlantic section of the Southern Ocean. I don’t know about you, but I find this stuff pretty fascinating!