Startling New ‘Death Ball Sponge’ Discovered
New carnivorous “death ball sponge” discovered about 2 miles
deep near the South Sandwich Islands. Credit: The Nippon
Foundation-Nekton Ocean Census/Schmidt Ocean Institute
You’ve heard of the Death Star weapon in Star Wars, but have you heard
of the carnivorous death ball sponge in the South Atlantic Ocean? The
predatory sponge is one of 30 new species that scientists discovered on
an expedition around Antarctica—and there are likely more new species
to come. Scientists on board the Schmidt Ocean Institute’s research
vessel Falkor (too) collected nearly 2,000 specimens from 14 different
animal groups while looking for new species in the South Sandwich
Islands. This group of volcanic islands sits in the South Atlantic Ocean
about 1,000 miles east of the southern tip of South America and about
1,100 miles northeast of the Antarctic Peninsula.
So far, the scientists have evaluated less than 30% of the samples they collected. It will take time to examine and identify the rest, including whether they are an entirely new species or variations of known species. For example, they also collected “zombie worms,” from the genus Osedax, which researchers have seen before. These worms don’t have a mouth or gut. Instead, they secrete acid to “drill” into and absorb fats from animal bones, such as whale carcasses. Symbiotic bacteria living in the worms break down these fats, providing nutrients the worms can absorb.
The “death ball sponge” was found at 3,600 meters—more than two miles deep—at a trench near Montagu Island. Scientists are currently calling it Chondrocladia sp. nov. because it looks like some known species of the genus Chondrocladia, but the “sp. nov.” stands for “species nova,” or “new species.” Although it does not yet have a species name, researchers have concluded that it’s a predator, based on the tiny hooks that cover large white spheres on stalks extending from the sponge. Imagine multiple round lollipops sticking out from a sponge anchored to the ocean floor, except licking these lollipops would be like licking a cactus.
So far, the scientists have evaluated less than 30% of the samples they collected. It will take time to examine and identify the rest, including whether they are an entirely new species or variations of known species. For example, they also collected “zombie worms,” from the genus Osedax, which researchers have seen before. These worms don’t have a mouth or gut. Instead, they secrete acid to “drill” into and absorb fats from animal bones, such as whale carcasses. Symbiotic bacteria living in the worms break down these fats, providing nutrients the worms can absorb.
The “death ball sponge” was found at 3,600 meters—more than two miles deep—at a trench near Montagu Island. Scientists are currently calling it Chondrocladia sp. nov. because it looks like some known species of the genus Chondrocladia, but the “sp. nov.” stands for “species nova,” or “new species.” Although it does not yet have a species name, researchers have concluded that it’s a predator, based on the tiny hooks that cover large white spheres on stalks extending from the sponge. Imagine multiple round lollipops sticking out from a sponge anchored to the ocean floor, except licking these lollipops would be like licking a cactus.
