Over 100 new species of fish found in the Tasman Sea

  • Thread starter Thread starter Ivan Seeking
  • Start date Start date
AI Thread Summary
Scientists from Australia and New Zealand have discovered over 100 new fish species in the Tasman Sea, thanks to a four-week expedition aboard the Tangaroa research ship. The mission, which also collected 500 fish and 1,300 invertebrate species, was funded by Australia's National Oceans Office and New Zealand's Ministry of Fisheries. Notable findings include unique fish with specialized teeth and the Pacific spookfish, which detects prey using its elongated snout. The researchers also uncovered a fossilized megalodon tooth. A particularly fascinating aspect of the findings involves a species where males bite and attach to females during mating, leading to a permanent connection, described as "sexual vampirism." This unusual reproductive behavior sparked humorous commentary among participants about the implications if such a phenomenon occurred in humans.
Ivan Seeking
Staff Emeritus
Science Advisor
Gold Member
Messages
8,194
Reaction score
2,514
Scientists from Australia and New Zealand have identified more than 100 new species of fish in the waters that divide the two countries.

The Tangaroa, a deep-sea research ship, probed the Tasman Sea for four weeks last year, snaring 500 species of fish and 1,300 species of invertebrates. The 24 researchers also found the fossilised tooth of a megalodon, an extinct shark that was twice the size of the great white shark.

The project, funded by Australia's National Oceans Office and New Zealand's Ministry of Fisheries, uncovered weird and wonderful sea dwellers, including fish with tongues covered in teeth and fish with hinged teeth that enable them to swallow large meals. Another creature, the Pacific spookfish, uses its long snout like a metal detector to search out the electrical impulses of prey concealed in the seabed.

Among the species hauled in from more than a mile beneath the waves was the dumbo octopus, which navigates through the water with the help of a pair of flaps. According to Dr Mark Norman, a senior curator at Museum Victoria, it looks like "the cartoon character Dumbo the flying elephant".[continued]

http://news.independent.co.uk/world/australasia/story.jsp?story=504102
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Biology news on Phys.org
Now wait for the Japanese to build a net big enough and catch them all. Over 100 new flavors of sushi.
 
"During copulation, the male bites the female and hangs on. "He drinks her blood in return for giving her sperm," Dr Norman told The Sydney Morning Herald newspaper. The flesh of the two fish then fuses together and they remain permanently connected. "It's like sexual vampirism," Dr Norman said. "We found females with up to six males attached."

Glad this doesn't happen to humans. Can you imagine every sex partner you've ever had permanently attached to you? :eek:
 
talk about being a kept man. :eek:
 
Evo said:
"During copulation, the male bites the female and hangs on. "He drinks her blood in return for giving her sperm," Dr Norman told The Sydney Morning Herald newspaper. The flesh of the two fish then fuses together and they remain permanently connected. "It's like sexual vampirism," Dr Norman said. "We found females with up to six males attached."

Glad this doesn't happen to humans. Can you imagine every sex partner you've ever had permanently attached to you? :eek:
Jeez, one would be bad enough. More than one is unthinkable! :eek: :wink:
 
Evo said:
Can you imagine every sex partner you've ever had permanently attached to you? :eek:

Can you clarify this a little for me? I don't know what you mean? :rolleyes:
 
Ivan Seeking said:
Can you clarify this a little for me? I don't know what you mean? :rolleyes:
Heheh. :biggrin: Well, it would be a problem for *some* people. :biggrin:
 

Hot Threads

Recent Insights

Back
Top