Vietnam’s giant sea beetle tastes like lobster

The giant sea beetle’s scientific name is Bathynomus vaderi belong Bathynomus, belongs to the genus of giant equidfoot beetles that live in deep cold water environments. This is a “super-sized” beetle, weighing more than a kilogram and measuring 32.5 cm long, making it one of the largest known beetles. The word “vederi” in their name comes from the characteristic helmet-like head of the character Darth Vader in the Star Wars series, according to Live Science.

So far, B. vaderi has only been discovered near the Spratly Islands, but also lives in many other places in the East Sea, according to research published on January 15 in the journal ZooKeys. The research team led by Professor Peter Ng at the Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum at the National University of Singapore examined specimens caught by local fishermen and found that several specimens had distinct shape characteristics. , revealing them to be a new species. The researchers describe the sharp concavity in the hip bones and the unique bony ridge protruding from B. vader’s snout bones, making it stand out from other supersized isopods.

According to the research team, species of the Bathynomus genus have recently become a specialty in Vietnam because of their lobster-like taste. Domestic demand turns them into luxury items in fresh seafood markets, leading to increased fishing pressure in the region. This commercial demand brings both opportunities and challenges. The fast-growing market could threaten the giant alethropod, but also pave the way for stricter regulation and sustainable practices in deep-sea fishing.

Despite its impressive size, B. vaderi is not the largest species of foot beetle. That title belongs to the species B. jamesican be about 50 cm long and weigh 2.6 kg. Super-large foot beetles often live in deep sea environments, so they are difficult to access for research.