New seadragon species makes first appearance; filmed in deep waters!

Image courtesy: Scripps Oceanography/YouTube

New Delhi: There's always a first time for everything, they say, and scientists have desperately been waiting for this one to happen.

Back in 2015, researchers from the Western Australian Museum (WAM) in Perth and the Scripps Institution of Oceanography in California came upon a new seadragon by analyzing the DNA of preserved specimens that were a part of a museum collection. Their existence was confirmed, but till now, there was no sign of them.

Well, a Ruby Seadragon, only the third known seadragon species in the world, has just made its debut appearance in the wild and researchers couldn't be happier!

The seadragon is believed to be a part of the seahorse family and has never been seen alive until now.

Researchers have released a footage showing the ruby seadragon swimming away in deep waters, where it was filmed using a mini ROV (Remotely Operated Vehicle).

According to a report in Australian Geographic, it took scientists a few days to find the tiny dragons, each measuring about 250mm in length. The two seadragons were found swimming in waters over 50m deep, well beyond the limits of recreational scuba diving, and researchers think this is why the species went undiscovered for so long.

"Until recently, no one had ever suspected a third species of seadragon existed. This discovery was made thanks to the great benefit of museum collections,” said Professor Greg Rouse, from the Scripps Institute, lead author of the new study, published today.

Scientists studied the elusive species and revealed new details about their anatomy, habitat and behavior. For example, the leaf-like appendages, a signature characteristic of the common and leafy seadragon, were missing in the ruby seadragon.

Similarly, they also observed a prehensile tail, not found in their seadragon relatives, but common on some far relatives such as the seahorse or pipefish.

"It was really quite an amazing moment when we discovered that the ruby seadragon lacks appendages. It never occurred to me that a seadragon could lack appendages because they are characterised by their beautiful camouflage leaves," said Scripps graduate student Josefin Stiller, a co-author of the new study, Australian Geographic reported.

Watch the captivating footage of the Red Seadragon below:

(Video courtesy: Scripps Oceanography)