Armored isopods crawl on the seafloor, feasting on fallen carrion. And they can grow quite big.
So big, in fact, scientists reference the largest types as "supergiants." Biologists have identified a new such species, Bathynomus vaderi, named for its resemblance to Star Wars' Darth Vader — though, rest assured, these deep sea animals aren't evil Siths.
They reach a foot long, making them appear as striking 14-legged critters. And in recent years, they've apparently become a delicacy in Vietnam, as they're caught by ocean trawlers.
"Some go as far as claiming it’s more delicious than lobster, the 'king of seafood,'" notes a press release about the discovery from Pensoft Publishers, a science literature publisher. "Some outlets and restaurants even advertise the sale of these 'sea bugs' online on various social media platforms, including how best to cook them!" the release added.
The research has been published in the science journal ZooKeys. The four Bathynomus vaderi specimens described came from dealers in coastal Quy Nhơn in south-central Vietnam, and were fished from the South China Sea.
The new identification underscores the great biodiversity of the ocean — much of which we know little about or have yet to find.
"That a species as large as this could have stayed hidden for so long reminds us just how much work we still need to do to find out what lives in Southeast Asian waters," the release noted.
Ocean research organizations are now vigilantly documenting and mapping the deep sea. Scientists want to shine a light — literally and figuratively — on what's down there.
The implications of knowing are incalculable, particularly as deep sea mineral prospectors prepare to run tank-like industrial equipment across parts of the seafloor. For example, research expeditions have found that ocean life carries great potential for novel medicines. "Systematic searches for new drugs have shown that marine invertebrates produce more antibiotic, anti-cancer, and anti-inflammatory substances than any group of terrestrial organisms," notes the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
