Living deep under the waters of the Gulf of Mexico are some of the weirdest creatures on the planet. Upon first contact, one would think that these were some kind of alien species that happened to be on Earth. However, Heather Bracken-Grissom, one of the marine scientists behind this study, states that these are just shrimp and lobster larvae.
These shrimp larvae look like little creatures with armor-like horns, misshapen torsos, and some with spikes protruding from their sides.
With the use of deep-sea forensics, Bracken-Grissom and Ph.D. candidate Carlos Varela identified the 14 species of the larvae based on their known adult counterparts. They conducted genetic tests for identification and connected dots on their evolution family tree.
Shrimps go through multiple larval stages. Only a handful of data of larval forms of shrimps are known to scientists. Most larvae are found in the mesopelagic zone, open water between 200-1,000 meters, and settle in deep waters when they become adults.
A variety of life stages of the shrimp are still unknown. There are still mysteries of biodiversity that encourage the research team to keep on searching.
All Images: Danté Fenolio
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