World’s Deepest Dwelling Land Animal Discovered 2 Kilometers Underground
by James Plafke | 4:40 pm, February 22nd, 2012
Discovered almost two kilometers underground, this arthropod, known as Plutomurus ortobalaganensis, is the deepest dwelling land animal ever discovered. The arthropod was found in the cave Krubera-Voronja, fittingly the world’s deepest cave, located near the Black Sea in Abkhazia. The cave’s bottommost point is 2,191 meters below its mouth, and the arthropod was discovered 1,980 meters below the surface.
Being so far below the surface, the arthropod feeds off fungi and other decaying matter. The species is classified as a springtail, a type of wingless insect, and lives in total darkness, which is probably fine, considering it doesn’t have any eyes. Discovered by Ana Sofia Reboleria from the University of of Aveiro, Portugal, Plutomurus ortobalaganensis wasn’t the only new species discovered, as three more springtails, Anurida stereoodorata, Deuteraphorura kruberaensis, and Schaefferia profundissima were discovered as well.
Beforet his discovery, springtails were still found underground, but only half a kilometer, not even close to the two kilometeres these new eyeless springtails were discovered. Unfortunately, the newly discovered species aren’t some kind of humans from the center of the planet, but hey, maybe those guys are still there.
(via New Scientist)
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