A Consortium of Octopuses
Released from the research vessel Falkor in late 2023, a remotely operated vehicle dove into the depths of the Pacific Ocean off the Coast Rican coast. After descending 3km, two low temperature hydrothermal springs were discovered. You may be more familiar with hot hydrothermal vents, which hold a temperature of around 350°C making them easy to identify from their plumes of smoke arising from the sea floor. Contrastingly, low temperature springs warm the water to only about 10°C warmer than the seabed’s average of 2°C and are therefore much harder to identify.
Previous explorations had ascertained low temperature hydrothermal springs as brooding areas for octopus as they gather to lay their eggs in areas of warmer water. But aboard the Falkor, an incredible discovery was made. These two new springs were found to be home to an octopus and skate nursery, withholding four previously undiscovered species of octopus! Details of each species is yet to be publicly known; however, one has been named the Dorado octopus after the nearby rock formation it was found near.
These new species of octopus have been identified as solitary by the researchers, and this is typical behaviour of deep-sea octopuses. Local scientific knowledge was utilised in these expeditions and the specimens that were collected will be displayed at the University of Costa Rica’s Museum of Zoology, for the locals to enjoy. It is vital to include local knowledge and expertise for biodiversity conservation as it can provide insight into areas and topics that were previously unknown by Western science. Moreover, this project trained local researchers into how to lead future expeditions such as these, to ensure a comprehensive analysis of the species in this area is achieved.
Having the most up to date knowledge on biodiversity is vital for the formation of conservation policy. Due to the inaccessibility of deep marine environments, it is hard to achieve protection for these areas. Particularly as the prospects of deep-sea mining, which extracts mineral depositions from the seabed, is gathering motion and international legislation prohibiting it is absent. There are vast resources of nickel, cobalt, copper and other metals in the ocean, most of which have been untouched thus far. However, as many countries begin to make a green transition, there is a heightened demand for metals used in electric car batteries, wind turbines and solar panels, most of which can be found in the deep sea.
Although reducing our dependency on non-renewable energy is a positive step towards combatting climate change; the effects of deep-sea mining has proven to be disastrous for animal populations due to noise, vibration, suspended sediment and light pollution. Octopuses, alongside other deep-sea creatures, utilise sound for survival in the absence of light. If deep sea mining persists, this sensory ability will be contested, making navigation for finding food and partners difficult for such animals. Disturbance from mining could be detrimental to our new octopus species. Furthermore, as deep-sea ecosystems act as carbon sinks, destroying these habitats from deep sea mining could have an overall negative impact on the climate. As the International Seabed Authority (ISA) has yet to compile regulations against deep sea mining, the future for these newly discovered octopuses remains uncertain.
