Scientists Find New Species in Hawaii

[icymist]

October 31, 2006, 8:14 PM EST


HONOLULU -- Researchers on a three-week mission to remote French Frigate Shoals in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands discovered 100 species never seen in the area before, including many that may be entirely new to science.

"There were lots of organisms that people were saying, 'Wow! What's that?'" said Joel Martin, a zoologist in charge of invertebrates for the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County.

Researchers returned from the voyage Sunday with at least 1,000 species of invertebrates, including worms, crabs and sea stars. About 160 unique species of limu were also found.

Among the discoveries are: multicolored worms, a bright purple, foot-long sea star and a hermit crab that dons a sea anemone and sports shiny golden claws.
Newsday

[mcscajun]

1. Anyone care to bet that these aren't truly "new" species, but just

ones that have relocated due to environmental changes, particularly in marine habitats? (Dead zones, warming, other species relocating or dying out.)

[AlGore-08.com]

3. Ding! Ding! Ding! We have a winner!

[Infinite Hope]

10. Well...

By using the word "new" it's not like they meant they were newly evolved. That just means previously undiscovered.

[BadgerKid]

2. The Earth, she is amazing. n/t

[kestrel91316]

4. I wanna know where I can get one of these:

".......a hermit crab that dons a sea anemone and sports shiny golden claws."

[davidinalameda]

7. I think I saw one on TV

when I was watching reports of Halloween in the Castro

and it looked fabulous

:rofl:

[xchrom]

8. you mean that species of fish that disguises

itself as Divine?

then there's the shell fish that looks exactly like john waters.

[davidinalameda]

9. is it a shellfish

wow, learning something new on DU

:rofl:

[alfredo]

5. I'm waiting for them to find something like

Trilobites or other species that they thought were long extinct, because their habitat has shrunk to one small area that we haven't explored yet. We have only just begun exploring the ocean bottom.

[Hekate]

6. Limu -- yum, tasty.....LOL

That anemone-wearing crab sounds wonderful -- I'd love to see that.

Hekate