Giant Sea Cockroaches With 14 Legs Found In Indonesia

There are a multitude of things in this universe that we are unaware of and are yet to be explored. One such creature that has been found in the deep sea off the coast of West Java in Indonesia is the 'sea cockroach'.

The sea cockroaches are giant creatures with 14 legs. The new species, called Bathynomus raksasa, belongs to a group of animals called giant isopods, and can grow up to 20 inches in length. They have an armoured shell that protect them from damage.

Although fearful nightmarish looking, these sea cockroaches hold an important place in the marine ecosystem. They scavenge on dead sea creatures that drift down to the ocean floor, thereby maintaining the chain.

The creature was found during a marine survey conducted by Peter Ng of the National University of Singapore and colleagues, as reported by an international daily.

During the 14-day expedition in West Java, the team collected over 12,000 deep-sea creatures - of which the gigantic cockroach was one.

Following the discovery, and the picture on social media, it immediately went viral. Many called the supergiant creatures as 'nightmares'.

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During an expedition, there are some animals which you find unexpectedly, while there are others that you hope to find. One of the animal that we hoped to find was a deep sea cockroach affectionately known as Darth Vader Isopod. The staff on our expedition team could not contain their excitement when they finally saw one, holding it triumphantly in the air! #SJADES2018

A post shared by LKCNHM (@lkcnhm) on Apr 1, 2018 at 9:30pm PDT