Swarm of Cutthroat Eels: May 2018

 

In this video, cutthroat eels (Ilyophis arx, family Synaphobranchidae) swarm at a small bait package deployed on the summit of an unnamed abyssal seamount in the southwestern Clarion Clipperton Zone at a depth of 3,083 meters (1.92 miles) during the DeepCCZ expedition.

During the expedition, scientists used camera systems designed to sink to the seafloor, free of the ship, with a parcel of food (dead fish) in view. These baited cameras attracted all sorts of fishes, large shrimp, and other animals that are top predators and scavengers of the deep. By luring the animals in using a source of natural food, scientists can view footage from the cameras to identify, count, and measure the animals attracted and in turn build a better understanding of the deep ecosystem in this region.

This particular swarm of cutthroat eels represents the largest aggregation of fishes ever recorded in the abyssal deep sea at the time.

 

Download SD version (mp4, 7.9 MB).

Video courtesy of the Deep Sea Fish Ecology Lab, Astrid Leitner and Jeff Drazen, Department of Oceanography, SOEST University of Hawaii Manoa, DeepCCZ expedition.

 


 

For More Information

Feeding the Wildlife

Largest Aggregation of Fishes in the Abyssal Deep Sea