Tuesday Crustie: Down deep

This crustacean isn’t big, but space is in short supply when you’re 1.4 kilometers under the surface of the earth.

This little animal may be a copepod - Borgonie and colleagues (2015) list it as Amphiascoides with a question mark behind it, but provide no more details.

This picture has been contrast enhanced from the original in the journal article.

Reference


Borgonie G, Linage-Alvarez B, Ojo AO, Mundle SOC, Freese LB, Van Rooyen C, Kuloyo O, Albertyn J, Pohl C, Cason ED, Vermeulen J, Pienaar C, Litthauer D, Van Niekerk H, Van Eeden J, Sherwood. Lollar B, Onstott TC, Van Heerden E. 2015. Eukaryotic opportunists dominate the deep-subsurface biosphere in South Africa. Nature Communications 6: 8952. http://dx.doi.org/doi:10.1038/ncomms9952

External link 

Animals found living in rock deep, deep underground