Scientists have discovered a fearsome new predator in the ocean depths

© Emiliano Arano/Pexels

Discovered in the hadal zones, these oceanic regions located between 6 and 11 km deep, this animal had never been documented. Dulcibella camanchaca, a predatory amphipod, has been captured nearly 8 km below the surface in the Atacama Trench, off the coast of Chile and Peru. Fear not, because it is actually… a shrimp.

A rather unique specimen, made for hunting in the great depths. The creatures of the abyss will never cease to amaze us, remember this bouncing octopus that we told you about a little over a month ago. Dulcibella camanchaca is now to be removed from the (very) long list of abyssal animals still unknown to scientists.

The Atacama Trench is one of the deepest ocean trenches in the world and has yet to yield all his secrets. © Screenshot/Google Maps

A miniature fighter adapted to extreme conditions

Despite its modest size not exceeding not four centimeters, this crustacean related to sea fleas turns out to be a formidable predator. Equipped with specialized prehensile appendages, it actively tracks its prey – mainly other amphipods – in the total darkness of the deep sea.

« This species is a fast swimmer that we named after the word for ‘darkness’ in Andean languages, referring to the dark environment where it hunts ,” explains Johanna Weston of the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI), co-director of the study.

One of the specimens of Ducibella camanchaca ; As it is, it is unremarkable, but its discovery is very important. © Johanna Weston, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution

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The capture of four specimens of D. camanchaca during the IDOOS (Integrated Deep-Ocean Observing System) 2023 expedition allowed scientists from the Instituto Milenio de Oceanographia (IMO) in Chile to conduct a battery of morphological and genetic analyses.

The results, published in the journal < i>Systematics and Biodiversity prove that this is a new species, but also of a new taxonomic genus. To understand the significance of this discovery, one must understand the difference between genus and species.

The species is the most specific level. It groups together individuals that resemble each other physically, share a common ancestor, and are capable of reproducing with each other to produce fertile offspring. The genus is a broader level. It groups together several species that share more general common characteristics. For example, lions, tigers, and leopards all belong to the genus Panthera.

By discovering a new genus, it means that we have discovered a new branch of the tree of life and the existence of an entire group of previously unknown organisms.

A strong argument for continuing deep-sea exploration, according to Carolina González of the IMO, also co-director of the study. “This discovery illustrates the need to maintain our research efforts in the Atacama Trench, particularly in Chilean territorial waters,” she explains. Hadal zones are far from being an underwater desert; they are home to a unique biodiversity whose extent we are only just beginning to measure, hence the need to protect them against the upheavals caused by human activity.

• Dulcibella camanchaca, a unique predatory shrimp, has been identified at a depth of nearly 8 km.
• This 4 cm crustacean, equipped with specialized appendages, actively hunts in the total darkness of the hadal zones.
• Dulcibella camanchaca is not only a new species, but also belongs to a new genus, previously unknown.

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