#peracarida

Whale louse (Cyamus scammoni)

Simple little isopod friend

Cubaris nigroflava

Usually, amphipods are small, with a shrimp-like shapes, these crustaceans are found mostly marine and freshwater ecosystems. But a new species discovered in the Atacama Trench, in front of the Atacama desert, northern Chile, has shown a new exception to the rule.

The Eurythenes atacamensis is a very large amphipod species, with a maximum observed length 8.3 cm. Despite the extreme environmental conditions of high pressure, low temperature, and limited food availability, this species is considered abundant in deep sea ecosystems in the Atacama trench, and feed mainly in carrion. This finding highlights that even dominant and ecologically important species are still being discovered within the deep sea.  

Photo: Eurythenes atacamensis, female, juvenile, intersex and male desposited at the  MNHNCL. Size presented here is nearly close to real size.

Reference (Open Access):  Weston. et al. 2021. Eurythenes atacamensis sp. nov. (Crustacea: Amphipoda) exhibits ontogenetic vertical stratification across abyssal and hadal depths in the Atacama Trench, eastern South Pacific Ocean. Mar. Biodivers.

Hiding

Unidentified, family Armadillidae

Peekaboo!

Unidentified, family Armadillidae

Serolid isopod (Ceratoserolis meridionalis)