A newly discovered tiny blue octopus from the Galápagos is a striking reminder that the deep ocean still holds countless secrets.
The Galápagos Islands, located off the coast of Ecuador, are famous for their remarkable wildlife. More than a thousand species of plants and animals found there exist nowhere else on Earth, including giant tortoises and marine iguanas. Now, scientists have added another unique resident to that list: a tiny blue octopus previously unknown to science.
The newly identified species was described in a paper published in the journal Zootaxa.
Deep-Sea Expedition Reveals a Mysterious Octopus
The octopus was first encountered during a 2015 deep-sea expedition aboard the E/V Nautilus. The mission was carried out in partnership with the Charles Darwin Foundation (CDF) and the Galápagos National Park Directorate.
Researchers used a remotely operated underwater vehicle (ROV) to investigate the seafloor near Darwin Island, the northernmost island in the Galápagos archipelago. The island is named after Charles Darwin, whose observations there contributed to the development of his theory of evolution.
While surveying an underwater mountain approximately 5,800 feet (1,773 meters) below the ocean’s surface, the ROV’s camera captured an unusual sight: a tiny blue octopus moving across the seafloor.
Audio recorded during the dive captured the scientists’ excitement as they watched the animal appear on screen:
“He’s tiny!”
“It’s blue!”
Using the ROV, the team successfully collected the octopus. During the same expedition, they also recorded footage of two other individuals that appeared to belong to the same species.
A Rare Specimen Stands Out
After returning from the expedition, researchers brought dozens of deep-sea specimens to the Charles Darwin Research Station for examination. Among the collected animals, the small blue octopus immediately attracted attention.
Roughly the size of a golf ball, it did not match any known species. Seeking expert help, researchers contacted octopus specialist Janet Voight and sent her a photograph.
“Right away, I knew it was something really special,” says Voight, curator emerita of invertebrates at the Field Museum in Chicago and the lead author of the study describing the new species. “I’d never seen anything like it.”
Scientists at the research station preserved the specimen in alcohol and formalin before sending it from the Galápagos to the Field Museum in Chicago, where Voight could study it in detail.
Using CT Scans Instead of Dissection
The specimen turned out to be a species never before documented by science. However, studying it presented a challenge.
“When you describe a new species of octopus, you have to look at all the parts, including the mouth, the beak, and the teeth. And to see those things, you have to cut the specimen open. We only had the one specimen, so I didn’t want to take it apart,” says Voight.
To avoid damaging the only known specimen, Voight partnered with Stephanie Smith, manager of the Field Museum’s X-ray computed tomography laboratory, to create detailed micro CT scans.
“Because CT imaging is non-destructive, it’s especially important for type specimens like this one. And that’s great for me because people are often bringing me these incredibly rare and stunningly beautiful specimens that I get the privilege of virtually opening up,” says Smith, a co-author of the paper describing the new species. “There’s nothing like spending the day looking at something no other human has ever seen.”
CT imaging works by combining thousands of X-ray slices into a highly detailed three-dimensional digital model. This technique allows researchers to examine internal structures without physically opening a specimen.
In the case of the tiny blue octopus, the scans revealed important anatomical details, including structures inside its mouth. Those findings provided the evidence needed to formally recognize it as a new species and determine its evolutionary relationships with other octopuses.
“What really struck me was that the scan of the little octopus revealed so much information on its internal organ systems — usually, soft-part imaging using micro CT requires the use of heavy-metal-based contrast agents whose use would not be desirable with such a rare specimen. This made the 3D modeling of relevant organs really an easy task,” says Alexander Ziegler, a researcher at the University of Bonn in Germany and senior author of the paper.
A New Species Named Microeledone galapagensis
The new species has been named Microeledone galapagensis. Beyond its striking appearance and rarity, the discovery also marks an important milestone for Voight.
Although she has spent four decades studying octopus evolution, this is the first time she has officially led the scientific description of a new octopus species.
“These are little octopuses that live in the deep sea, and hardly anybody on Earth has ever gotten to see them. I just feel lucky that I got to work with them,” says Voight. “If you took all the land on Earth and pieced it together, you would not cover the Pacific Ocean. The oceans are so big, and there’s so much left to explore.”
Why Deep-Sea Discoveries Matter
Researchers say discoveries like this highlight how much remains unknown about the deep ocean and why continued exploration is essential for conservation.
“When we were sorting through dozens of specimens collected during the expedition, this tiny blue octopus fascinated us,” said Salome Buglass, marine scientist at the University of California, Los Angeles, former researcher at the Charles Darwin Foundation and co-author of the paper. “There was something unusual about it, so we went out of our way to find the right person to help us identify what it was. Getting the specimen to Janet was a long process, but one I would gladly repeat if it means getting to know the most precious parts of our ocean just a little bit better. Discoveries like these remind us how much of the deep ocean in Galápagos remains unexplored. Every new species helps us better understand these hidden ecosystems and why protecting them matters.”
Reference: “A new species of Microeledone from Galápagos Islands and an amended diagnosis of the Megaleledonidae (Octopoda: Incirrata)” by Janet R. Voight, Stephanie M. Smith, Salome Buglass and Alexander Ziegler, 25 May 2025, Zootaxa.
DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5814.4.5
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