US EditionDeep-Sea 'Flapjack' Octopus with Umbrella-Like Body Found at 1,500-Meter Depths
- In 2022, scientists aboard the CSIRO RV Investigator discovered a new flapjack octopus species off Western Australia’s Carnarvon Canyon Marine Park.
- The discovery followed a month-long voyage to survey seabed biodiversity, marking the first detailed mapping of Carnarvon Canyon and Gascoyne Marine Parks.
- A newly identified small flapjack octopus, Opisthoteuthis carnarvonensis, features blood-red tentacles and reaches about 4 cm in diameter. This deep-sea creature inhabits depths ranging from 1,044 to 1,510 meters off the coast of northwestern Australia.
- Dr Tristan Verhoeff, a volunteer taxonomist at the Tasmanian Museum, said the octopus's presence adds value to the marine parks and increases understanding of Australia's deep-sea biodiversity.
- This discovery contributes to ongoing efforts to describe over 1,000 new species from CSIRO voyages, supporting conservation and highlighting the deep sea’s unexplored biodiversity off Australia’s coast.
13 Articles
13 Articles
New shape shifting octopus found in canyon off WA coast
A new species of flapjack octopus, with massive eyes and blood-red tentacles, has been discovered from a deep-sea canyon off the coast of Australia. The new species has been named Opisthoteuthis carnarvonensis, or the Carnarvon Flapjack Octopus, for the location in which it was found at a depth of 1044 to 1510m. Dr Tristan Verhoeff, volunteer Systematic Taxonomist, at the Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery says “This new species is a flapjack octo…
ABC Australia
New octopus species found off WA coast
The Carnarvon flapjack octopus was collected by scientists on a 2022 CSIRO research voyage, but it wasn't named until last week. The species is one of a number of newly-described species collected during the voyage.
CSIRO discovers 'blood-red' flapjack octopus in deep waters off WA
The flapjack octopus is one of 10 species identified from a CSIRO voyage to Western Australian waters in 2022. Photo: CSIRO Facebook. Research into samples collected during a 2022 voyage has unveiled a previously unknown species of flapjack octopus, to be dubbed the Carnarvon Flapjack Octopus or Opisthoteuthis carnarvonensis. The new species, with “massive eyes and blood-red tentacles”, was discovered in a deep-sea canyon in Australian waters du…
Scientists Just Found a Bizarre New Octopus—and It Looks Like a Gelatinous Umbrella - Commonwealth Union
In a major step toward marine biology, a novel species of flapjack octopus, distinguished by its considerable ocular organs and crimson tentacles, has been unearthed from the abyssal depths of a submarine canyon off the Australian coastline. Christened Opisthoteuthis carnarvonensis, or the Carnarvon Flapjack Octopus, its nomenclature pays homage to its discovery site. This constitutes the tenth—and most recent—new species to emerge from specimen…
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