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October 3, 2020: Squat Lobster

During the final dive of the 2016 Hohonu Moana: Exploring Deep Waters off Hawaiʻi expedition, while exploring the top portion of an unnamed seamount located ~200 miles south of Midway, the team encountered this squat lobster that had unusual yellow eyes. Scientists identified the squat lobster as belonging to the genus Munidopsis, but were not able to narrow down a species identification.

Image courtesy of the NOAA Office of Ocean Exploration and Research, Hohonu Moana 2016. Download larger version (jpg, 1.2 MB).

During the final dive of the 2016 Hohonu Moana: Exploring Deep Waters off Hawaiʻi expedition, while exploring the top portion of an unnamed seamount located ~200 miles south of Midway, the team encountered this squat lobster that had unusual yellow eyes. Scientists identified the squat lobster as belonging to the genus Munidopsis, but were not able to narrow down a species identification.

Learn more about some of the squat lobsters and shrimp encountered during the expedition in this mission log, “Cozy on Corals, Snug in Sponges: Deep-sea Squat Lobsters and Shrimps.”