This vibrant animal, called Ctenocidaris, was captured by biologists during explorations of the deep seas around Antarctica.

The Antarctic Benthic Deep-Sea Biodiversity Project, or ANDEEP, catalogued more than 700 new species during expeditions between 2002 and 2005.

The ANDEEP cruises were also the first to study the DNA of deep-sea species in the oceans off Antarctica.

“The great advantage in the Antarctic is that the water column is cold all the way up,” said Angelika Brandt, a marine biologist at the University of Hamburg in Germany, “so we can bring material up on deck and extract DNA before it becomes damaged by heat.”

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