The Giant Woodlouse of the Deep Sea
Deep in the ocean lives a creature like a woodlouse the size of a cat. One in a Japanese aquarium went more than five years without eating.
What was reported
Giant isopods are relatives of woodlice and pill bugs that live on the dark sea floor, hundreds or thousands of metres deep. They can grow to around 50 centimetres long. The first was described in 1879 from a young specimen caught in the Gulf of Mexico.
They scavenge on dead animals that fall from above. In a Japanese aquarium, one famous individual refused food for more than five years before it died, and others can go months without eating.
Explanations offered
Growing large in the deep sea is common among some animals, a pattern called deep-sea gigantism, possibly linked to cold water, high oxygen and scarce food. Giant isopods' slow metabolism lets them survive long periods without food.
- When
- Described in 1879
- Where
- Gulf of Mexico
- Witnesses
- Deep-sea scientists and aquariums
- Status
- Confirmed
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