In a thrilling video partake to Facebook back in 2020 , the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute ( MBARI ) accomplish something astonishing when they caught a pair of flying posterior . It might sound like we ’re blab rubbish , but this is the fun soubriquet given to the pigbutt louse , Chaetopterus pugaporcinus .

The deep - sea pigbutt worm survive at deepness of around 1,000 measure ( 3,300 feet ) and is n’t the easiest affair for human eyes piloting remotely work vehicles ( ROVs ) to spot , being the size of it of a marble . Though they be modest , they be nifty , with a imperial build that leaves them resembling a hog ’s rump – which is where the Latin “ pugaporcinus ” get from .

Pinning down the pigbutt dirt ball ’s identity operator required something of a mission for MBARI ’s ROVs , as research worker needed to pocket a few samples if they were go to conduct the necessary deoxyribonucleic acid analysis to complement their observations . luckily , ROVs come with detritus samplers which – with a bit of wizardry on the part of the pilot – can be utilized as pigbutt worm traps . And boy , did they snag a dish .

The detritus sampler are specially project to be able to capture touchy sample without dice them to smithereens , which is a plus when working with squishy pigbutt worms . As the target drifted into the clear cylinder , the ROV pilots were capable to deploy a mechanical subdivision that sweep over the piston chamber sealing it keep out .

Pigbutt dirt ball secured , they were able to formally write the new species inThe Biological Bulletinback in 2007 .

“ An extraordinary Modern mintage , Chaetopterus pugaporcinus , is described from eight specimens collected from deep mesopelagic waters off Monterey Bay , California , by remotely operated vehicles , ” wrote the authors behind the pivotal find .

“ If the specimens described here are larvae , they are remarkable for their sizing , which ranged from 10 to 21 mm [ 0.4 to 0.8 column inch ] total length , nearly twice the duration of the great polychaete larva antecedently reported . [ … ] If grownup , they are peculiarly unusual in their habitat choice and body descriptor . ”

aviate on you disturbed pigbutt worms .