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Underwater creatures: 5,000 new species found in the Pacific Ocean

News imageSMARTEX Project/ NERC A brittle starSMARTEX Project/ NERC
5,000 new species have been found in an area of the Pacific Ocean called the Clarion-Clipperton Zone.
News imageSMARTEX Project/ NERC A gummy squirrelSMARTEX Project/ NERC
These weird and wonderful creatures include worms, corals and sea cucumbers known as "gummy squirrels and bears".
News imageNatural History Museum, London Scientist at the Natural History Museum, LondonNatural History Museum, London
Scientists, like Muriel Rabone, have put together the list of creatures for the first time. There are plans to mine the zone for deep-sea metals which could put the nature of the area at risk.
News imageSMARTEX Project/ NERC Small Abyssal WormsSMARTEX Project/ NERC
Of the creatures found in the study, 90% of them were completely new to scientists.

Check out some of the species below!

News imageSMARTEX Project/ NERC An Abyssal Gummy SquirrelSMARTEX Project/ NERC
An abyssal gummy squirrel was one of the strange creatures found at the bottom of the ocean.
News imageSMARTEX Project/ NERC Carnivorous SpongeSMARTEX Project/ NERC
Scientists sent remote-controlled vehicles down to the bottom of the Pacific Ocean where they found species like this carnivorous sponge. It’s like a box being dragged across the ocean floor!
News imageSMARTEX Project/ NERC Abyssal Sea CucumberSMARTEX Project/ NERC
They then made a huge list of all the creatures that they found, like the abyssal sea cucumber.
News imageSMARTEX Project/ NERC Ping Pong SpongeSMARTEX Project/ NERC
It’s the first time a list like this has been made of what lives in this area - like this ping pong sponge. Now they know what does live there they can begin to understand how to approach and protect these creatures.
News imageSMARTEX Project/ NERC AnemoneSMARTEX Project/ NERC
5,000 new animal species were discovered and this anemone is one of them. But scientists think there's a lot more still to be discovered.