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K.S. Sudhi -
In the Bay of Bengla after over a century of their first identification, three unique marine organisms, Deep Sea Smoky Bat fish, Grooved Razor fish and Frog crab, have been re-recorded from Indian waters after a gap of over a century.
Cruises on board ocean research vessel ‘Sagar Sampda' in the Bay of Bengal yielded the species. The specimens were collected off the Andhra Pradesh coast during the cruises held between August and September 2009.
It took over a year for the identification and validation of the species, scientists of the Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute here said.
Bat fish was first described by Alfred William Alcock in 1894 after it was spotted in the Bay of Bengal following surveys conducted on board ‘Investigator,' the Royal Indian Marine Survey Ship.
The samples were obtained from a depth ranging from 265 metres to 457 metres. The recent collection of the species came off Tamarapatnam at a depth of 100 metres and after 116 years of its identification, said scientists E. Vivekanandan and R. Jeyabaskaran.
Of the nine Bat fish species available worldwide, four have been reported in India. These species mainly feed on molluscs, marine worms, small crustaceans and occasionally small fishes. Bat fishes are mostly found in Indo-West Pacific, South Africa, Vietnam, Malaysia, the Philippines, Indonesia, Australia, Taiwan and China.
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