Scientists have announced the discovery of a previously unidentified species of octopus found in the Galápagos Islands — and it’s sure to turn heads. The creature, which sports blue flesh and large eyes, can fit between the bottom of your palm and the first knuckle of your middle finger.In 2015, a remotely operated underwater robot captured the little, blue animal moving around in the sediment about 5,800 feet (1,773 meters) beneath the surface.From the ship above, one crew member compared the creature to a plush toy.AdvertisementAdvertisement“Is that a cute little guy, or what?” said another crew member, who can be heard in video footage documenting the researchers’ discovery.Paperwork and logistics delayed the research process for the animal — a female cephalopod — though a crew aboard the E/V Nautilus discovered it more than a decade ago in collaboration with the Charles Darwin Foundation and the Galápagos National Park Directorate. The octopus didn’t arrive at the Field Museum in Chicago until 2022.In a study published May 24 in the journal Zootaxa, Janet Voight, curator emerita of invertebrates at the Field Museum, identified the octopus as a previously unknown species: Microeledone galapagensis.Voight was hesitant to do much dissection when she began studying the tiny animal.AdvertisementAdvertisementThe octopus had been preserved in formaldehyde, which halts decomposition. However, because the specimen had large eggs in its ovaries, the formaldehyde could not fully penetrate the entire animal, leaving its flesh relatively delicate.“If you make the wrong cut or tear something, it’s gone forever,” Voight said. “The cost of going to sea is just astronomical, and the chances of finding another one and successfully collecting it are just not high.”Using a CT scanner, researchers were able to create a 3D model of a newly discovered species of octopus. – Charles Darwin FoundationAfter consulting with other experts, she decided to use the Field Museum’s newly acquired CT scanner to get a better look into the animal’s anatomy while keeping the specimen intact.Thousands of X-rayed images were digitally comp …
