Astonishing Deep-Sea Behavior Caught on Camera!

With over 75 dives in Alvin even Deep-Sea Biologist, Tim Shank can still be amazed by the wonders of the deep ocean. Listen and watch Tim describe this incredible experience while diving in Alvin to newer deeper depths where he witnesses life beyond the imagination. A scientific paper has been submitted for review, so stay up to date by signing up for WHOI's newsletter Ocean Insights! https://www.whoi.edu/sign-up/
More on this particular dive:
In 2022, the upgraded 6500 m rated Deep Submergence Vehicle (DSV) Alvin encountered the isopod Bathyopsurus nybelini Nordenstam, 1955 (Munnopsidae) at depths 5002–6288 m in the Puerto Rico Trench and Mid-Cayman Spreading Center. In most of the 37 observations, the isopods carried large fronds of Sargassum. Through an integrative suite of morphological, DNA sequencing, and microbiological approaches, we found that this isopod actively seeks out and feeds upon Sargassum by using a specialized swimming stroke, serrated and grinding mouthparts, and a gut microbiome capable of degrading sulfated polysaccharides and fixing nitrogen. The abundance of Sargassum on the seafloor and the isopod’s physiological, morphological, and ecological adaptations to use this food source demonstrate that Sargassum is a direct and important trophic link between the surface and deep ocean.

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