Latest news with #TristanVerhoeff
West Australian
3 days ago
- General
- West Australian
CSIRO-led voyage leads to discovery of new deep-sea species, Carnarvon flapjack octopus, off Gascoyne coast
Meet the Carnarvon flapjack octopus — a new deep-sea species discovered in a canyon off the Gascoyne coast named after the location where it was found and its resemblance to a pancake. With massive eyes and blood-red tentacles, the small, gelatinous deep-sea octopus grows to about 4cm in diameter, but little is known about its ecology or lifestyle. The opisthoteuthis carnarvonensis is the 10th and latest new species to be described from specimens collected during a 2022 CSIRO-led voyage by research vessel Investigator, which surveyed relatively unexplored habitats and seabed biodiversity of the Gascoyne and Carnarvon Canyon Marine Parks for the first time. Since the survey, researchers, taxonomists and other stakeholders have been working to identify and describe some of these new species. In newly published research, Dr Tristan Verhoeff, a volunteer systematic taxonomist with the Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery, described the new species of flapjack octopus. It is a type of cirrate or 'dumbo' octopus of which there are 50 described species worldwide and 15 recorded from Australian waters. It is a deep-sea shape shifter able to flatten its body to resemble a pancake or to pull itself up to look like a tiny gelatinous umbrella. Unlike other octopus, they produce no ink and cannot change colour. 'The Carnarvon flapjack octopus' presence adds extra value to these recently established marine parks,' Dr Verhoeff said. 'This species discovery increases our understanding of Australia's deep-sea ecology and biodiversity. Describing new species is also essential for future work on their ecology and assessing populations for conservation.' Dr Lisa Kirkendale, head of department aquatic zoology at the WA Museum, said the Indian Ocean was 'truly a frontier for marine biodiversity research' and support was needed to 'document fabulous new species, such as the Carnarvon flapjack octopus.' CSIRO marine national facility team leader Dr Venetia Joscelyne said the 2022 voyage had been vital for increasing the understanding of the region's seafloor habitats and biodiversity. 'This was the first time the Carnarvon Canyon and Gascoyne Marine Parks have been mapped in detail and explored to depths of more than 5000 metres,' she said. 'From this single research voyage alone, we are seeing many new marine species being described. Incredibly, scientists estimate that there are likely more than 1000 new species waiting to be described from specimens collected on RV Investigator voyages over the past 10 years.'
Perth Now
3 days ago
- Health
- Perth Now
New ocean species with massive eyes discovered off WA coast
Meet the Carnarvon flapjack octopus — a new deep-sea species discovered in a canyon off the Gascoyne coast named after the location where it was found and its resemblance to a pancake. With massive eyes and blood-red tentacles, the small, gelatinous deep-sea octopus grows to about 4cm in diameter, but little is known about its ecology or lifestyle. The opisthoteuthis carnarvonensis is the 10th and latest new species to be described from specimens collected during a 2022 CSIRO-led voyage by research vessel Investigator, which surveyed relatively unexplored habitats and seabed biodiversity of the Gascoyne and Carnarvon Canyon Marine Parks for the first time. Since the survey, researchers, taxonomists and other stakeholders have been working to identify and describe some of these new species. In newly published research, Dr Tristan Verhoeff, a volunteer systematic taxonomist with the Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery, described the new species of flapjack octopus. The Carnarvon flapjack octopus has blood-red tentacles. Credit: Cindy Bessey, CSIRO It is a type of cirrate or 'dumbo' octopus of which there are 50 described species worldwide and 15 recorded from Australian waters. It is a deep-sea shape shifter able to flatten its body to resemble a pancake or to pull itself up to look like a tiny gelatinous umbrella. Unlike other octopus, they produce no ink and cannot change colour. 'The Carnarvon flapjack octopus' presence adds extra value to these recently established marine parks,' Dr Verhoeff said. 'This species discovery increases our understanding of Australia's deep-sea ecology and biodiversity. Describing new species is also essential for future work on their ecology and assessing populations for conservation.' Dr Lisa Kirkendale, head of department aquatic zoology at the WA Museum, said the Indian Ocean was 'truly a frontier for marine biodiversity research' and support was needed to 'document fabulous new species, such as the Carnarvon flapjack octopus.' CSIRO marine national facility team leader Dr Venetia Joscelyne said the 2022 voyage had been vital for increasing the understanding of the region's seafloor habitats and biodiversity. 'This was the first time the Carnarvon Canyon and Gascoyne Marine Parks have been mapped in detail and explored to depths of more than 5000 metres,' she said. 'From this single research voyage alone, we are seeing many new marine species being described. Incredibly, scientists estimate that there are likely more than 1000 new species waiting to be described from specimens collected on RV Investigator voyages over the past 10 years.'
ABC News
19-05-2025
- Science
- ABC News
Meet the Carnarvon flapjack octopus, a newly-discovered species of rare and unusual octopus
It's a tiny gelatinous deep-sea shapeshifter with large eyes and blood-red tentacles. Meet the Carnarvon flapjack octopus, or opisthoteuthis carnarvonensis, a new species discovered off the West Australian coast. It was collected by scientists during a CSIRO voyage in 2022 from the Carnarvon Canyon Marine Park, but was not named until last week. As one of the smaller members of the flapjack species, the octopus only grows to around four centimetres but shares the species' unique ability to flatten its body into the shape of a pancake — or a flapjack as its name suggests. It's a type of cirrate or "dumbo" octopus, a rare and unusual species that have a pair of fins on the top of their heads that resemble miniature elephant ears and assist with swimming. They reproduce and grow slowly, but, unlike other octopus, they cannot produce ink or change their colour. As hungry dwellers that live more than 1,000 metres deep on the dimly lit sea floor, the Carnarvon flapjacks' large eyes enhance their ability to capture worms and small crustaceans. Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery volunteer Tristan Verhoeff is the systematic taxonomist who named the octopus. Dr Verhoeff described the year-long process as "fun". "It is exciting, but at the same time, there is pressure to do it right," he said. The procedure for naming a species involves multiple steps, including collecting measurements, counting suckers, dissecting internal organ systems, and capturing detailed photographs. After that, the results need to be compared with previous research to ensure the species is indeed new. Dr Verhoeff has also helped name six other cirrate octopus species since 2021. Some of those species had been stored in unidentified collections for decades. He said the discovery of the Carnarvon flapjack, along with those he was involved in identifying previously, helped "increase our understanding of Australia's deep-sea ecology and biodiversity". "Describing new species is also essential for future work on their ecology, and assessing populations for conservation." He said research had already found Australia has a higher biodiversity of cirrate octopus species compared with any other country. There are now more than 50 cirrate octopus species identified worldwide, with 15 recorded in Australian waters. Because the Carnarvon flapjack can only be found off north-western Australia, "its presence adds extra value to the recently established marine parks", Dr Verhoeff said. The naming of the Carnarvon flapjack octopus marks the 10th new marine species to be discovered during the research voyage, joining the recently identified painted hornshark and the parallel-spine scorpionfish. The CISRO said that throughout the voyage, scientists used advanced underwater camera systems to survey thousands of metres below the ocean surface. Nets and sleds were then used to collect targeted samples of specimens. Since the voyage, researchers, partner museums and research collections "have been busily working to help identify and describe some of these new species", the CSIRO said. CSIRO Marine National Facility team leader Venetia Joscelyne said the discoveries made "help marine managers, such as Parks Australia, better conserve and protect the incredible diversity of marine life that inhabits Australia's oceans".
Miami Herald
13-05-2025
- Science
- Miami Herald
Deep-sea creature with ‘massive eyes' discovered in canyon. It's a new species
Thousands of feet below the surface of the Indian Ocean, a reddish sea creature with 'massive eyes' used its 'long' arms to move through the water. Something approached the deep-sea animals, caught it and pulled it toward the surface. Aboard a research vessel, scientists looked at their catch. It turned out to be a new species. Researchers set out on the RV Investigator for a monthlong expedition in late 2022 to survey the seabed and document the deep sea biodiversity off the western coast of Australia, according to Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO), the organization that led the project. During the trip, researchers collected five unfamiliar-looking octopuses and later showed them to Tristan Verhoeff, a marine biologist, according to a study published May 12 in the peer-reviewed Australian Journal of Taxonomy. Verhoeff took a closer look at the octopuses, compared them with known species and soon realized they'd discovered a new species: Opisthoteuthis carnarvonensis, or the Carnarvon flapjack octopus. Carnarvon flapjack octopuses can reach about 7.5 inches in length but shrink after being preserved, the study said. They are 'gelatinous' with a 'dome-like' body and eight 'thick, relatively long' arms with dozens of suckers. Their heads have 'very large' eyes and 'small' fins. Photos show the new species and its 'dark brown-red' coloring. Some pale 'unpigmented' spots dot its body, the study said. Much about the lifestyle of Carnarvon flapjack octopuses remains unknown. The octopuses likely live near the seafloor and were found in an underwater canyon at depths of about 3,400 to 5,000 feet, the study said. A 2022 news release from CSIRO shows the research vessel that collected the new species. Verhoeff named the new species after the Carnarvon Canyon Marine Park where it was first discovered. So far, Carnarvon flapjack octopuses have only been found in a small region off the northwestern coast of Australia, the study said. The new species was identified by its internal anatomy, reproductive system, arm suckers and other subtle physical features, Verhoeff said. The study did not include a DNA analysis of the new species. 'The waters around Australia and New Zealand, and the Pacific Ocean more broadly, host a high diversity of flapjack octopods, though this diversity remained largely undocumented until recently,' Verhoeff said.
