The new species of Dumbo octopus named Grimpoteuthis imperator has been identified and classified without the need to dissect the animal, thanks to a non-invasive scan.
Discovered on an underwater mountain ridge in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, researchers identified the creature through a combination of high-field magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and micro-computed tomography (micro-CT) scans, plus minimally genetic analysis. invasive performed on tissue samples.
A unique species
“In zoology , descriptions of species are conventionally based on invasive morphological techniques, which often results in damage to specimens and therefore only a partial understanding of their structural complexity. Here we present a combination of methods entirely non-invasive and minimally invasive that allow taxonomic descriptions of large zoological specimens in a more complete way “, explain the authors in their study published in the journal BMC Biology.
These animals descend to about 7,000 meters under water. The shape of the shell, the position of the fin and the length of the arm of this octopus identify it as being of the genus Grimpoteuthis . They are often given the name Dumbo because of their similarity to the classic Disney cuddly elephant character of the same name, thanks to two large head flippers that you can see in the image above.
Referencia: A. Ziegler & C. Sagorny. 2021. Holistic description of new deep sea megafauna (Cephalopoda: Cirrata) using a minimally invasive approach. BMC Biol 19, 81; doi: 10.1186/s12915-021-01000-9
