Graduates from evil medical school have long dreamed of sharks with frickin' laser beams
on their heads; but when they moved into their first volcano fortress they were disappointed
sharks couldn't survive there…
OR CAN THEY.
80 percent of volcanic eruptions likely happen under water; even on the ocean floor, volcanoes
produce explosions and molten lava, even though there's high-pressure, and it's verrrry cold.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration reports the Pacific flood West Mata volcano
spews water that's akin to the acidity somewhere between battery and stomach acid.
And yet, some shrimp were spotted living nearby.
Volcanoes may be deadly, but are considered rich environments because of ample bacteria,
minerals and warmth.
During a survey in 2012 of the volcanically active Kermadec Ridge by New Zealand's National
Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research, scientists found rainbow colored Polychaete
(polly-keet) Worms, sometimes called bristle worms.
They've got extending, protruding jaws like an H.R.
Geiger wet dream…
they're creeptastic.
Because of the rarity of undersea exploration, scientists often discover new species once
they get down there; like the Crown Jellyfish, spotted 5000 feet below the surface (1500M).
This unidentified species uses its long tentacles to sweep for bioluminescent zooplankton.
So weird.
On another expedition in 2009, Oregon State University researchers explored new species
around a highly active volcano near Guam.
They found "shrimp, crab, limpets and barnacles," and one of them, the Loihi shrimp, has "tiny
claws like garden shears" which allow it to graze on bacterial filaments.
They also found a species of shrimp that preys on things killed by the noxious plumes emanating
from these mouths of hot volcanic death.
Obviously, when the volcano erupts, the animals have to flee, but the benefits outweigh the
costs.
This is why most of the animals that live near volcanoes are small, crabs, shrimp, worms
and coral.
Evolutionarily, they can take that risk, but a large animal?
That's hot.
Pacific Sleeper sharks are normally found in the North Pacific from Japan to Mexico,
and are generally sluggish, sleepy sharks.
They're considered non-aggressive and live really deep, so they're difficult to see.
But in July a team from National Geographic was taking video of the Kavachi volcano and
found two species of shark hanging out inside the volcano's caldera.
The researchers freaked because Kavachi erupted two dozen times in the 20th century, including
twice in the least 15 years!
It's considered one of the most active volcanos in the Southwest Pacific, and yet, 12 miles
from the deadly volcano…
there were these sluggish sharks!
The water would be far hotter, and more acidic than they normally could handle, and it raises
more questions than answers.
If confirmed, they would be the furthest south they'd ever been seen, and it begs the question:
how can these sharks survive in such an extreme environment.
I haven't said this in a few weeks, so bear with me.
More reasaearch is nedeed.
More shark research?
Yes, please!
Sharks are jawsome.
Do you have any ideas why a shark would want to live near a volcano?
At this point, your guess is might be as good as
the scientists'.