Thursday, July 31, 2008

Deepest Live Fish Catch: 7,100 Feet

Amazing. Because such creatures live under such enormous pressure, bringing them up normally kills them long before they even reach the surface. But they have pressurized tanks that they put live catches in while at depth, and the latest technologies have allowed for these records.

"Pressurised recovery has been around for the past 30 years, but this is the deepest fish-capture under pressure - the previous record was 1,400m. This is also the first time pressurised capture has occurred at a hydrothermal vent," said Dr Bruce Shillito, marine biologist at the Universite Pierre et Marie Curie, Paris, France.

The shrimp species were caught at 1,700m (5,600ft; Mirocaris fortunata and Chorocaris chacei) and 2,300m (7,500ft; Rimicaris exoculata) at two vent fields, Lucky Strike and Rainbow, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge.


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