@mbari_news: Deep-sea Snuffleupagus 🤗⁠ ⁠ Sea pigs (Scotoplanes sp.) are one of the most commonly sighted animals on the deep seafloor off Monterey Bay—but plentiful hardly means boring. Unlike most sea cucumbers, which have stumpy tube feet tucked beneath their bodies, sea pigs use their long, stilt-like tube feet to suspend their bodies above the soft mud. Huge groups have been spotted feasting near sunken whale carcasses.⁠ ⁠ In 2016, MBARI documented a surprising relationship between sea pigs and king crabs (Neolithodes diomedeae). During a survey of an open area of muddy seafloor, 96 percent of the juvenile crabs were observed clinging to the undersides of Scotoplanes sea cucumbers, presumably for protection from predators. We don’t yet know how the hosts may be benefiting from their little hitchhikers. Our researchers are still digging up new facts about the sea pig. #MBARI #DeepSea #DeepOcean #fyp

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Wednesday 14 August 2024 18:56:21 GMT