CARNIVOROUS DEATH BALL SPONGES! ZOBIE WORMS!?

Carnivorous!  OCEAN CENSUS ORG

Excerpt:

Its spherical form is covered in tiny hooks that trap prey, a clear contrast to the gentle, passive, filter-feeding undertaken by most sponges. ‘Zombie worms’ (Osedax sp.) were also observed. Although not thought to be new to science, these worms have no mouth or gut and rely on symbiotic bacteria to break down fats inside the bones of whales and other large vertebrates.

 

SMITHSONIAN : NEW SPECIES IN SOUTHERN OCEAN

SCHMIDT OCEAN INSTITUTE : WOULD YOU LIKE TO APPLY TO TRAVEL ON A RESEARCH VESSEL?

SCHMIDT OCEAN ORG 

SCHMIDT OCEAN ORG : THRIVING ECOSYSTEM ON DETACHED ICEBERG

The ICEBERG was as big as CHICAGO... and on the sea floor...

Excerpt: An international team on board Schmidt Ocean Institute’s R/V Falkor (too) working in the Bellingshausen Sea rapidly pivoted their research plans to study an area that was, until last month, covered by ice. On January 13, 2025, an iceberg the size of Chicago, named A-84, broke away from the George VI Ice Shelf, one of the massive floating glaciers attached to the Antarctic Peninsula ice sheet. The team reached the newly exposed seafloor on January 25 and became the first to investigate an area that had never before been accessible to humans.

SEE THE PICTURES!

A large sponge, a cluster of anemones, and other life is seen nearly 230 meters deep at an area of the seabed that was very recently covered by the George VI Ice Shelf, a floating glacier in Antarctica. Sponges can grow very slowly, sometimes less than two centimeters a year. Therefore, the size of this specimen suggests this community has been active for decades, perhaps even hundreds of years.

ICEBERG THE SIZE OF CHICAGO LET GO FROM ANTARTICA

NASA EARTH OBSERVATORY - ICEBERG SPEEDS AWAY

Excerpt: Named A-84 by the U.S. National Ice Center, the berg measures about 30 kilometers (19 miles) long and 17 kilometers (11 miles) wide. It has an area approaching the size of Chicago, Illinois.

Iceberg calving is a normal occurrence  for ice shelves. However, factors such as warming air and water along with decreasing protective sea ice can accelerate calving and lead to collapse, as has happened to several ice shelves along the Antarctic Peninsula.

Observations made by explorers beginning in the early 1940s, and later by remote sensing, show that the George VI has been losing shelf ice. For now, the retreat has been gradual, aided by the stability provided by its unique location, sandwiched between the Antarctic Peninsula and Alexander Island. *** Siren here! As we know, iceberg melt can raise the sea level. Other, larger bergs have broken off and gone to sea...

THE LAST OCEAN : ANTARTICA'S ROSS SEA PROJECT : SAVING THE MOST PRISTINE ECOSYSTEM ON EARTH

A fantastic book (think of it when gifting!) full of adventure and amazing photography.  Some of the subjects... way more than I could put in labels... Emperor Penguins, Adelie Penguins, Minke Whales, Killer Whales,  The Ross Ice Shelf, McMurdo Research Station, Shakelton's Hut (circa 1908 - a historical monument to survival), underwater Antarctica, Weddell Seals....

HOW SEALS USE THEIR LUNGS TO DIVE DEEPER AND THIER INCREASED CAPACITY TO USE OYGEN.

THE FORMATION OF SEA ICE... BLUE ICEBERGS... 

BY THE EARLY 1970's THE WHALE POPULATION HAD PLUMMETED BY 90%.

NEW ANTARTICA SEA CREATURE WITH TWENTY LEGS THAT LOOKS LIKE A STRAWBERRY AT FIRST GLANCE!

Excerpt: Antarctic feather stars are 'large' animals that can live anywhere from about 65 feet to about 6.500 feet underwater and have an 'otherworldly appearance' when swimming, researchers said. Although both are invertebrate ocean animals, feather stats are distinct from more well-known sea starts.

During their surveys, researchers collected eight feather stars with a distinctive body shape and discovered a new species:  Promoachocrinus fragarius of the Antarctic Strawberry Feather Star...

Great photo and more information of the creature's colors and overall appearance!

YAHOO - MIAMI HERALD - STRAWBERRY FEATHER STAR

UN COURT ORDERS JAPAN TO STOP ANTARTIC WHALE HUNTING

CBS NEWS JAPAN ORDERED TO HAULT ANNUAL ANTARTIC WHALE HUNT  link to video:

March 31, 2014, 6:49 PM|

The UN’s highest court has ordered Japan to stop its annual whale hunt in the Antarctic, ruling that the research produced didn’t justify the number of animals killed. Japan is one of the few countries to practice whaling. Seth Doane reports.

PBS : ON UN COURT ORDER plus video and text

"Japan has killed as many as 3,600 minke whales and issued permits for hunting humpback and fin whales within the Whale Sanctuary since the issuing of the JARPA II permits in 2005, The New York Times reports. The U.N. found that not only does Japan lack significant scientific results from their purported studies, but the evidence suggests that Japan has been exploiting the whales for other reasons. The U.N. has determined that Japan has breached its obligations under the International Convention for the Regulation of Whaling...."

ANTARTICA : SEA CREATURES NEAR THE DEEP SEA VENT : YETI CRABS PACK THEIR OWN LUNCH

YETI CRABS that bring their own lunch... seven pronged star fish... unusual sea creatures living near the extra hot deep sea vent in otherwise fridgid waters of the Antartic ocean. Seems the Antartic is the latest zone of great discoveries...

Linking to the Fox news coverage by Stephanie Pappas. Click on the title of this blog post to get right there!

GATEWAY ANTARTICA : LINK TO THE FISH THAT LIVE ON THE ICE ABOVE THE SURFACE OF THE SEA

This is a new one for me. I knew that there were some fish that could survive for a short while half in and out of the water, but I never thought I would see fish that are living on the top of the ice. Go to the ADAPTIONS TO THE COLD PAGE and see the picture for yourself!

The Antartic temperatures require great adaptations. THESE SURFACE DWELLING FISH HAVE BLOOD THAT'S LIKE ANTIFREEZE!

NSIDC NATIONAL SNOW AND ICE DATA CENTER

It's way too hot! Here in the Northern Hemisphere it is SUMMER and there are some overwhelming heat waves happening right now... But in the SOUTHERN hemisphere, and the SOUTHERN ocean, the ANTARCTIC it is winter, dark, and colder than ever. Here is a very scientific site that looks at snow and ice and weather...

"Arctic SEA ICE reflects sunlight, keeping the polar regions cool and moderating global climate. According to scientific measurements, Arctic sea ice has declined dramatically over at least the past thirty years, with the most extreme decline seen in the summer melt season."

The thought keeps me cool! Siren


The National Snow and Ice Data Center
Supporting Cryospheric Research Since 1976
449 UCB University of Colorado Boulder, CO 80309-0449