Scientists in China have identified a potentially new species of vampire squid, named Vampyroteuthis pseudoinfernalis, in the South China Sea's twilight zone at depths of 800-1,000 meters.
Vampire squids, including the proposed new species, are deep-sea scavengers found in temperate and tropical oceans worldwide, reaching nearly 1 foot (0.3 meters) in length. They gravitate toward dead animals and feces and are unlikely to harm anything apart from small invertebrates.
They are adapted to survive in the Twilight Zone, a dark layer of the ocean between 200-1,000 meters below the surface, where sunlight cannot reach. They have evolved to emit light through bioluminescence and can grow up to about 30 cm in length.
Despite their name and appearance, vampire squids are not true squids and do not suck blood. They are unique sea creatures within the cephalopod order, with a gelatinous body and eight appendages connected by webbing.
The proposed new species exhibits unique features that distinguish it from the previously known Vampyroteuthis infernalis, including different photophore positions, a pointed tail, and a longer lower jaw beak wing.
Genetic analysis supports the classification of V. pseudoinfernalis as a separate species from V. infernalis.
The order Vampyromorphida now includes V. infernalis and the proposed V. pseudoinfernalis, alongside numerous extinct relatives found in the fossil record.
Sources: LiveScience, Coast to Coast AM, Nature World News, The Bharat Express News.
This article was written in collaboration with Generative AI news company Alchemiq.
