‘Species inhabits cold seeps & deep-sea hydrothermal vents’

This discovery is essential, because it helps understand more about the different organisms living in the ocean, said sources, while adding that it also shows why we should keep exploring and studying the unique parts of the Indian Ocean.

Gonsalves said that these creatures are valuable because “they add to the variety of life in the ocean, and live in special places deep in the ocean, not places where people usually fish”.

“These species presently have value from the biodiversity view point rather than fishery potential,” said Gonsalves. “They mainly inhabit specialised environments like deep-sea hydrothermal vents and cold seeps. Another species of squat lobster, Galathea strigosa, which is found in the northeast Atlantic Ocean, and in the Mediterranean Sea and Red Sea is edible, but has not been fished commercially,” she said.

Published literature reveals the presence of the Shinkaia crosnieri in places like hydrothermal vents near Papua New Guinea, Japan, and Taiwan, at depths ranging from 1,330 to 1,483m. It’s also seen in other deep spots like the South China Sea and various places in the East China Sea.