Divers Discover Furry Blond Crustacean
PARIS (March 8) - A team of American-led divers has discovered a new crustacean in the South Pacific that resembles a lobster and is covered with what looks like silky, blond fur, French researchers said Tuesday.
Scientists said the animal, which they named Kiwa hirsuta, was so distinct from other species that they created a new family and genus for it.
The divers found the animal in waters 7,540 feet deep at a site 900 miles south of Easter Island last year, according to Michel Segonzac of the French Institute for Sea Exploration.
The new crustacean is described in the journal of the National Museum of Natural History in Paris.
The animal is white and just shy of 6 inches long - about the size of a salad plate.
In what Segonzac described as a "surprising characteristic," the animal's pincers are covered with sinuous, hair-like strands.
It is also blind. The researchers found it had only "the vestige of a membrane" in place of eyes, Segonzac said.

Catch of the Day is Blind and Blonde
DIVERS have discovered a new crustacean in the South Pacific that resembles a lobster and is covered with what looks like silky blonde fur.

Scientists said the animal, which they named Kiwa hirsuta, was so distinct from other species that they created a new family and genus for it.

A team of US-led divers found the crustacean in waters 2300 metres deep at a site 1500 kilometres south of Easter Island last year, according to Michel Segonzac of the French Institute for Sea Exploration. It is described in the journal of the National Museum of Natural History in Paris.

It is white and 15 centimetres long, about the size of a salad plate. In what Dr Segonzac described as a "surprising characteristic", the animal's pincers are covered with sinuous, hair-like strands. It is also blind. The researchers found it had only "the vestige of a membrane" in the place of eyes, he said.

The researchers said that while legions of new ocean species are discovered each year, it was rare to find one that merited a new family. The family was named Kiwaida, from Kiwa, goddess of crustaceans in Polynesian mythology.
AP