Marine biologists have spotted an extremely rare species of glass octopus that is completely transparent except for its eyes, optic nerve and digestive tract.?
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Called Vitreledonella richardi and commonly referred to as the glass octopus, the video of this beautiful creature was captured by an underwater robot (named SuBastian) through the deep waters of the Central Pacific Ocean.?
This was the result of a 34-day expedition off the remote Phoenix Islands -- an archipelago around 3200 miles northeast of Sydney, Australia.?
The expedition crew had reported two encounters with this majestic creature which might seem quite less but is actually impressive considering there is very little footage available of this particular creature.
In fact, according to a LiveScience report, it was so rare that scientists had to actually study them from the chunks of their bodies that were in the gut of the creatures who ate them. They were unknown to humans until 1918 when they were first spotted.
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There is very little known about these creatures. According to the International Union for Conservation of Nature, they are found in tropical and subtropical regions in the deep ocean -- specifically in the mesopelagic or twilight zone, 656 to 3280 feet below the surface and the bathypelagic or midnight zone which is around 3280 to 9800 feet.
Dr Jyotika Virmani, executive director of the Schmidt Ocean Institute (co-founded by Wendy and Eric Schmidt, former CEO of Google), who was also a part of this trip, said in a statement, ¡°Working with scientists and local researchers, this expedition is a remarkable example of the frontiers of science and exploration that we are able to support.¡±
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She added, ¡°Live-streaming the dives gives us a glimpse of rarely seen and fascinating creatures such as the transparent glass octopus. By providing this platform to further the understanding of our ocean, we trigger the imagination while helping to push forward scientific insights and the protection of our underwater world.¡±