"Researchers Unravel Giant Antarctic Sea Spiders' Reproductive Mystery"

Researchers from the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa have uncovered the reproductive mystery of giant Antarctic sea spiders, a phenomenon that has puzzled scientists for over 140 years. The team observed the behavior of these enigmatic creatures during a field research expedition to Antarctica and discovered that the male parent attaches thousands of tiny eggs to the rocky bottom, where they develop for several months before hatching as tiny larvae. This groundbreaking finding sheds light on the reproductive biology of Antarctic marine species and has wider implications for marine life and ocean ecosystems in Antarctica and beyond.