Scientists exploring the depths of the ocean off of the coast of Hawaii have reported discovered what they believe to be a new species of octopod. Colorless like Casper the ghost, the octopod has been given the name Casper.
It was discovered approximately two-and-a-half miles below the surface of the ocean off the coast of Necker island by the Okeanos Explorer, and it appears colorless like it does because it lacks any pigmentation, which would be useless at those types of water depths anyhow.
Additional things weren’t adding up too. Not only was the creature in a location it wasn’t expected to be found, and not only did it have a strange color to it, but it also seemed to lack a lot of muscle that a creature of this kind would typically have.
This depth is unusual for any kind of octopod, and it’s similar in size and shape to that of a shallow-water octopus. Because of the unusual qualities, scientists believe this is more than just an albino octopod, but the deeper living conditions suggest it may be of a new type of species that hadn’t yet been discovered.
"I knew it didn’t look like anything that’s been documented in the scientific literature," said Michael Vecchione, a NOAA zoologist working for the Smithsonian Institution. "When the sub got up close to it, it started climbing away, either reacting to lights of the sub or vibrations of the water.”
Scientists didn’t mean to stumble upon the creature, but it showed up on film as the scientists were conducting totally unrelated studies having to do with collecting geographical information.
Source: CNET