Namechanger sponge5/17/2023 In the case of Advhena magnifica, the shape of this sponge is reminiscent of an alien, like in the movies, with what looks like a long thin neck, an elongated head, and huge eyes. We usually try to associate the name to something unique about that species, or we can honor someone, the expedition name, or a locality. The scientific name for a new animal is always Latin or Greek. How did you choose the scientific name, Advhena magnifica, for this new sponge? SEM image courtesy of Cristiana Castello Branco illustration by Nick Bezio. As part of the completion of his degree in Scientific Illustration at California State University, Monterey Bay, Nick did an internship with Allen at NMNH. The illustration on the right shows the same spicules, drawn by Nick Bezio. Because sponge spicules are delicate and sometimes not complete, SEM imagery is often supplemented with scientific illustration. Scientists used a powerful scanning electron microscope (SEM) to get the detailed image on the left of the sponge’s spicules in the image, the spiky tips of the spicule are about 20 micrometers across. Once I began to examine the sponge’s spicules, however, I realized that they were not the same as those from any known species. At first, I thought it would be a new species of Bolosoma (a genus I’d been working on during my thesis). Among these samples, I found a couple representatives of the glass sponge family Bolosomidae, including a big and beautiful sponge with an alien-shaped body. I also decided to examine specimens from other parts of the world that were closely related to taxa I was describing in my thesis. Eduardo Hajdu) by analyzing some specimens from the Atlantic region. sponge,” I had started my studies with Allen and Eduardo (Dr. But on top of that, we have to compare what we see to all the known species of a particular genus to find out if it is known or new to science.įor the “E.T. The types of spicules and how they are organized in the body vary across different types of sponges, and the spicules are what we use to make identifications. But to know you found a new one, you need to analyze the skeletal elements of the sponge, called spicules, in the lab using powerful microscopes. While we know very little about deep-sea sponges, we do know they are very abundant, so chances are often good that we will find new species. It is a long process between when we first see a specimen and when we can give it a name. How did you know you’d found a new type of sponge? Image courtesy of Cristiana Castello Branco. student at NMNH being supervised by NOAA Fisheries’ Dr. At the time of the sponge discovery, Cristiana was a Ph.D. Allen Collins, Director of the NOAA Fisheries National Systematics Laboratory located at NMNH.Ĭristiana prepares to enter a Curasub submersible for a dive. sponge.” Cristiana is working under the guidance of Dr. Cristiana Castello Branco, a postdoctoral researcher, who made the discovery of the “E.T. The collected sample was sent to the NMNH for long-term care and study by researchers, setting the stage for this exciting-and charismatic-discovery. In 2016, while exploring a seamount just east of the Mariana Trench, a sample of the sponge had been collected. Turns out that this wasn’t the first time that scientists exploring via Okeanos Explorer had encountered this unusual sponge. Rising high on a stalk, this sponge had a body with two large holes oddly reminiscent of the large eyes of the alien from the beloved movie, E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial. Chris Mah of the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History (NMNH) dubbed the scene the “Forest of the Weird” due to the diversity of prominent sponges rising up on stalks with their bodies oriented to face the predominant current carrying tiny food particles.Īmong the different sponges within this alien-like community was one that could not be missed. On July 25, 2017, while exploring a seamount nearly 850 miles southwest of Hawai'i during an expedition led by the NOAA Office of Ocean Exploration and Research on NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer, a team of deep-ocean explorers came upon an extraordinary seascape. sponge.” Video courtesy of the NOAA Office of Ocean Exploration and Research, 2017 Laulima O Ka Moana. Amongst these sponges was the now newly described and named “E.T. While exploring "Ridge" Seamount during the 2017 Laulima O Ka Moana: Exploring Deep Monument Waters Around Johnston Atoll expedition, remotely operated vehicle Deep Discoverer encountered this alien-like community composed almost exclusively of glass sponges that were uniformly oriented with the direction of the current. To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |