New Species of Marine Worm Found Shimmering in the Deep Sea of Costa Rica

New Species of Marine Worm Found Shimmering in the Deep Sea of Costa Rica
(Photo: Wikimedia Commons/Dan Hershman )

The depths of the ocean appear to be a whole new world of alien mystery. Recently, researchers discovered a new species of marine worm shimmering in the dark.

New Marine Worm Species Discovered

The team led by marine biologist Greg Rouse of the Scripps Institution of Oceanography identified the new find as Pectinereis strickrotti. It is reportedly the 48th new species they found flourishing near methane seeps off Costa Rica's coast, an area previously believed to be too hostile for life to exist.

According to Rouse, they have been attempting to identify and characterize the biodiversity of the deep oceans for years. Up to this point, more new species have been discovered than they have time to name and describe. This merely illustrates the vast amount of unexplored biodiversity that exists. Due to this, he feels that they must both preserve and continue to explore the deep oceans.

During a crewed dive off the coast of Costa Rica in 2009, Rouse and his colleague Bruce Strickrott-the chief pilot for the deep-sea submersible Alvin, after whom the worm was named, came into contact with the new species at a depth of roughly 1,000 meters (3,280 feet).

According to Strickrott, they noticed two worms swimming just off the bottom, close to one another and about a sub's length distant. They tried to sneak in for a closer look because they couldn't see them clearly, but they frightened the creatures, which fled away.

When they returned to the same spot in 2018, they were surprised to encounter the same marine worms. During the expedition, six of them were already swaying boldly in the water. This time, they were able to approach and observe the species closer.

The group gathered specimens, films, and even pictures. After collecting the needed information, they withdrew to a quiet place to inventory and examine their discoveries.

The collection showed they had a novel species of sea worm, commonly referred to as ragworms, that belonged to the Neridae family. P. strickrotti, like other family members, is a segmented polychaete worm with a long body bristling with appendages resembling legs, termed parapodia, and hidden jaws that pop out to feed.

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What Are Ragworms; How The New Species Differ From Them?

Ragworm is any group of worms in the class Polychaeta (phylum Annelida), primarily marine or beach worms. Some species inhabit freshwater habitats. Sandworm, pileworm, and musselworm are some other common names.

Rag worms can range in length from 2.5 to 90 cm (1 inch to 3 feet), and their typical colors are bright green, brilliant red, or brown. Sharp retractable jaws are present on the head. There are four eyes and two small tentacles on the first segment of the body, while the second section bears four cirri that resemble tentacles. The shimmering marine worms were identified as a new species because they differed from the typical ragworms.

P. strickrotti live in the deep waters, while most ragworms live in much shallower waters. Additionally, P. strickotti is blind because it inhabits the bathypelagic darkness.

Furthermore, whereas P. strychrotti's parapodia are covered in gills, most known ragworms receive oxygen through their parapodia without the assistance of gills.