In 2023, scientists made a very interesting discovery. Off the coast of Japan, at a depth of 8,336 meters below sea level, they discovered the ray-finned fish Pseudoliparis belyaevi. These creatures have long been known to science, but the fact that they can live at such great depths came as a big surprise to scientists. According to researchers, there are no other animals in the world that live so deep. Readers of our site already know very well about the inhabitants of the ocean floor, where sunlight does not penetrate. What about animals that live deep in caves or even burrows? Who is the record holder among them? In just a couple of minutes you will know the answer!
Scientists still cannot come to a consensus about which animal lives deepest underground
At what depth do moles and diggers live
There are many animals in the world that live in deep burrows. The most famous of them are moles – they are blind, but with the help of their clawed paws they are excellent at digging the ground. Their nesting chambers can be located at a depth of up to 2 meters and, in fairness, it is worth admitting that this figure is not particularly impressive. This is slightly more than the height of an adult.
Moles dig deep holes, but they are not of record size. Image: forbes.com
The same can be said about naked mole rats. These not-so-pretty-looking creatures can live up to 30 years, making them the longest-living rodents in the world. Scientists have been studying these creatures for a long time, because they may hold the key to creating a cure for aging. They amaze with their ability to live long, but cannot surprise with the depth of their burrows – they also only go down to 2 meters.
Read also:Why are naked mole rats the longest-living rodents in the world?
Which underground animal lives the deepest
Moles and mole rats do not hold the record for the depth of their habitat. Then who stands out with such a feature?
Many sources say that the deepest living underground animal is the springtail Plutomurus ortobalaganensis. This tiny creature, up to 3 millimeters long, has no eyes, but has several limbs for movement.
The tiny springtail Plutomurus ortobalaganensis. Image: Wikipedia, user Enrique Baquero
The record holder for the depth of the habitat was discovered in 2010, inside one of the deepest caves in the world – Krubera-Voronya (Abkhazia). The cave formation itself has a depth of 2191 meters. Using bait in the form of an ordinary piece of cheese, the amazing creatures were lifted up from a depth of 1980 meters. During their study, researchers came to the conclusion that they feed on fungi and all sorts of decomposition.
Read also: Scientists have found a fish that lives at a depth of more than 8,000 meters – this is a record among animals
The deepest living worms
However, other sources say that the deepest living underground creatures are devil worms (Halicephalobus mephisto). We are talking about roundworms, whose body length also does not exceed a few millimeters.
These underground creatures were first encountered in 2011, while working in gold mines in South Africa. The maximum depth at which they were found was 3,600 meters. They lived in small puddles, the water in which was heated to 48 degrees Celsius. The analysis showed that these underground waters are up to 12 thousand years old. According to the miners, they were very scared when they saw something black, small and nimble in the accumulations of water.
Devil's worm under a microscope. Image: 22century.ru
As you can understand, devil worms are extremophiles – organisms that can live in extreme conditions. They survive not only in hot water, but also in liquids with minimal oxygen content. During observations, it was found that they reproduce asexually and feed on underground bacteria.
The discovery of devil worms was a very important scientific achievement. The fact is that no one had ever seen multicellular organisms living at a depth of more than 2 kilometers. Bacteria can live deeper, but for the purposes of this article we were only interested in complex organisms.
Be sure to subscribe to our Zen and Telegram channels. This way you won't miss anything interesting!
Almost all organisms that live at great depths lack eyes. There may be points on their heads that resemble organs of vision, but they serve no useful function. This is due to the fact that at great depths there is no sunlight, and these creatures simply do not need eyes. Also, this kind of animal is almost devoid of color and is either white or has transparent bodies. If you want to know more about such creatures, read our material “Cave spiders in Israel have lost their eyes, and there is a scientific explanation for this.”