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A sea cucumber known as "headless chicken monster" was filmed for the first time in the Southern Ocean with the help of a camera technology developed by researchers Australian.
The creature was filmed off eastern Antarctica and it is the first time that the species is seen in the area.
"Some of the images we receive from the cameras are breathtaking, including species we have never seen in this part of the world," said Australian Antarctic Division program director Dirk Welsford.
Eximia enypniastes was only seen in the Gulf of Mexico and was captured in the Southern Ocean by cameras developed by the division.
"The housing that protects the camera and electronic components is designed to attach to toothfish longlines in the Southern Ocean, so it must be extremely durable," said Welsford. "We needed something that could be projected on the side of a boat and that would continue to run reliably under extreme pressure in the diving black for long periods of time."
The data collected from the cameras are presented at the annual meeting of the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Fauna and Flora held Monday in Hobart.
The Australian commissioner for the meeting will advocate for a new Marine Protected Area in East Antarctica.
"The Southern Ocean is home to an incredible abundance and variety of marine life, including commercially valuable species, whose exploitation must be carefully managed for future generations," said the Commissioner Gillian Slocum.
The 10-day meeting will also include proposals on how to respond to climate change.
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