First-ever footage of the barreleye fish captured in the Atlantic
Scientists have filmed the barreleye fish, a rare deep-Atlantic dweller with tubular eyes, for the first time. Recorded at 710 meters with the…
English · Original discussion in Spanish · Published
The barreleye fish emerges from its deep anonymity
At 710 meters below the Atlantic, a robotic vehicle has recorded a barreleye fish (Winteria telescopa) alive and in motion for the first time. Until now, it was only known from dead specimens hauled up in nets. The expedition, a month-long voyage through the Doldrums Megatransform Fault Zone – one of the least charted regions of the ocean – filmed the animal using the Schmidt Ocean Institute's ROV SuBastian.
A creature of the shadows with telescope eyes
The barreleye fish owes its name to its enormous tubular eyes, adapted to the abyssal gloom. The footage shows an elongated, translucent body with a bulbous head housing those upward-facing eyes, ready to catch the silhouette of prey against the faint light from the surface. Scientists believe it feeds on small crustaceans and jellyfish.
What science knows and what it doesn't
The find is valuable because it allows the animal's natural behavior to be observed without the stress of capture. To date, there have been hardly any records of this species, which lives at depths of 200 to 1,000 meters. The expedition is part of an effort to map unknown ecosystems before deep-sea mining or climate change alter them forever.
A deck anecdote
Among the crew's comments, more than one joked about grilling the fish with garlic and oil. But the barreleye fish, like most deep-sea fauna, would never survive the pressure of a domestic kitchen. Its gelatinous body would simply fall apart. Better to leave it where it is: at 710 meters, with its telescopes gazing up at the underwater sky.
At 710 meters below the Atlantic, a robotic vehicle has recorded a barreleye fish (Winteria telescopa) alive and in motion for the first time. Until now, it was only known from dead specimens hauled up in nets. The expedition, a month-long voyage through the Doldrums Megatransform Fault Zone – one of the least charted regions of the ocean – filmed the animal using the Schmidt Ocean Institute's ROV SuBastian.
A creature of the shadows with telescope eyes
The barreleye fish owes its name to its enormous tubular eyes, adapted to the abyssal gloom. The footage shows an elongated, translucent body with a bulbous head housing those upward-facing eyes, ready to catch the silhouette of prey against the faint light from the surface. Scientists believe it feeds on small crustaceans and jellyfish.
What science knows and what it doesn't
The find is valuable because it allows the animal's natural behavior to be observed without the stress of capture. To date, there have been hardly any records of this species, which lives at depths of 200 to 1,000 meters. The expedition is part of an effort to map unknown ecosystems before deep-sea mining or climate change alter them forever.
A deck anecdote
Among the crew's comments, more than one joked about grilling the fish with garlic and oil. But the barreleye fish, like most deep-sea fauna, would never survive the pressure of a domestic kitchen. Its gelatinous body would simply fall apart. Better to leave it where it is: at 710 meters, with its telescopes gazing up at the underwater sky.
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Summary of a discussion on Burbuja.info - Foro de economía, actualidad y política., translated from Spanish and reviewed before publication. Read the full discussion (16 replies).
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