In Japan, deep sea worms with no central nervous system, no kidneys and no butts, are somehow still living today deep in the seafloor of the western Pacific Ocean. By conducting DNA and genome analysis, researchers from University of Tsukuba discovered this sixth species of the Xenoturbella genus, named Xenoturbella japonica, that is also peculiar due to its sharing of genetic characteristics with both “shallow” and “deep” Xenoturbella species. It was found where other shallow species are found, but has a ventral glandular system like the deep group of Xenoturbella.
According to Science Alert, “this suggests that some features may be ancestral and exclusive to the genus, and Xenoturbella japonica may be the key to figuring out which ones – as well as the history of the genus, and the early history of bilaterians.”
The new species can help tell us how we evolved as well. “This new species promises to be valuable for future research on bilaterian and deuterostome evolution,” lead author Hiroaki Nakano told Science Alert.