‘Coral Triangle’ Brewing with Undiscovered Diverse Sea Life

Scientists exploring a deep ocean basin in search of new species found marine life believed to be previously undiscovered, including a tentacled orange worm and an unusual black jellyfish. Project leader Dr. Larry Madin said Tuesday that U.S. and Philippine scientists collected about 100 different specimens in a search in the Celebes Sea south of the Philippines. The deepest part of the Celebes Sea is 16,500 feet.

“This is probably the center where many of the species evolved and spread to other parts of the ocean, so it’s going back to the source in many ways,” Madin reported. Madin said the specimens they collected included several possibly newly discovered species. One was a sea cucumber that is nearly transparent which could swim by bending its elongated body. Another was a black jellyfish found near the sea floor. The most striking creature found was a spiny orange-colored worm that had 10 tentacles like a squid, Madin said. “We don’t know what it is … it might be something new,” he said.
He said it would take “a few more weeks” of research to determine whether the species are newly discovered. He expects to release a report shortly.

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