Deep sea creeps in deep waters: do we also have them in the Netherlands?

In any case, the waters in and around our country are not as deep as anywhere else in the world. You have many, but the deepest place is Challenger Deep in the Mariana Trench, near Japan. This is approximately 11 kilometers deep. This is actually a kind of Mount Everest, but under water.

‘unique’

The captured fish were spotted near Japan, in the so-called Izu-Ogasawara Basin, which has a depth of 9,780 metres. The fish is the so-called dolphin snail. It’s unique that this fish has been photographed, says marine biologist Max Jansi of Burgers Zoo. “8.3 kilometers is really, really deep.”

It’s quite a challenge to shoot under these conditions,” Jansi told Editie NL. “It’s very dark and deep under the water. Even with the lights on, you can only see a very small part of the huge sea floor.” Moreover, the water pressure is so high that you cannot dive there, for example. “You can get there as a human or a robot with a submarine.”

good protection

But then it must be ensured that the cameras are well protected, otherwise they can also collapse under great stress. “You have this protection at different strengths, and so it can be used at different depths,” explains underwater photographer Raymond Winnix.

“It’s very difficult to take pictures underwater,” he continues. Water also filters a lot of light. “From a depth of five meters the red color disappears completely. When you are at 25 metres, almost everything except the blue disappears.” According to Wennekes, you need lights or flashes to still see and capture color beautifully.

Deep sea creeps

And if you manage to catch a fish, it can seem downright weird. “The high pressure makes it difficult for animals to survive,” says marine biologist Jhansi. “To our eyes, these fish often look strange. They are also called deep-sea creeps.”

Some of these “ghouls” have a large mouth, large teeth, and strings and lights attached to them. These lights can attract other animals. “Every animal has its own toolbox for finding, attracting and eating prey.”

Here in the Netherlands?

But those deep-sea crawlers, do you also find them in our North Sea? According to Janse, this is not the case. “The North Sea near Holland is about fifty meters deep. If you want to go deeper, you have to go north and you’re no longer in the Netherlands. That’s why we don’t know the deep sea creeps in here.” In the shallow waters of the North Sea. It was filmed at a depth of 8.3 kilometers. At the bottom of Dutch waters you will find animals like crabs, sea cucumbers and other fish.”

So for more amazing sea creatures, you really have to be out of the Netherlands. It is by no means clear what lies there. “So much is still unknown about what lives underwater. And it’s all about the deep sea. That’s what makes it so interesting.” But Jhansi also calls it dramatic because we know so little about the ocean. “It is the beating heart of the Earth.”