Sea finds get scientists delving deep for names

NIWA

HAIRY LOOK: Kareen Schnabel, collection manager for the Niwa invertebrate collection, with the coral named rasta because it appears to have dreadlocks.

NIWA

CORAL CLINGERS: Tiny new discoveries like this one are just one centimetre across and have been named squat lobsters.

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As they cruise around the Zombie seamount and discover creatures such as the rasta coral, Kiwi scientists are developing a knack for coming up with intriguing names.

A deepsea survey this year of seamounts – underwater mountains – on the Chatham Rise enabled researchers to find new species, which quickly acquired quirky nicknames.

The rasta coral was so named because its long white branches were thought to look like dreadlocks. A sea urchin was christened tam o'shanter because of a resemblance to the Scottish hat.

Less poetic, perhaps, is squat lobster for a lobster that is just one centimetre across.

The Chatham Rise, between the eastern South Island and the Chatham Islands, is 1000 kilometres long and includes many seamounts. One group there is called the Graveyards, with individual mountains having names like Zombie, Morgue and Gothic. Elsewhere, another seamount is named after former prime minister Dame Jenny Shipley.

Though the scientists have fun with their names, the work is serious and the seamounts fascinate researchers because of the great variety of creatures found there.

"We find completely new animals every time we carry out a survey on seamounts," voyage leader Malcolm Clark said.

The survey was carried out by the National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research ship Tangaroa. More than 38 hours of high-resolution video and more than 9000 still images were shot.

"It is important to actually collect the animals for detailed study and naming, but seafloor photography is giving us an incredible insight into how the animals live in their natural habitat," Dr Clark said.

The research was also valuable for managing the fishery resource.