This disturbing thing that sort of resembles a rolly polly is set to go on display in England for the first time ever. These rare Isopods live deep in the ocean in extremely cold temperatures, but for some reason, fishermen in the Atlantic discovered 9 of them in their lobster nets. They’re ugly, but sure are interesting to learn about.
Ali S.
Now this is the type of animal I want to put on a leash and walk down the street with just to freak people out.
Johnny Cat
All animals are beautiful, Jill. Just look at that design. Awesome.
BartC3
well if its an Isopod, then it is a ‘rolly poly’ or pillbug.
So that is just as it looks, a giant pillbug.
biltmore
“These rare Isopods live deep in the ocean in extremely cold temperatures, but for some reason, fishermen in the Atlantic discovered 9 of them in their lobster nets.”
The reason is that those fisherman’s nets scrape the bottom of the ocean floor which completely destroys coral and all sorts of things. When they scrape along the ocean floor, it destroys so much and it picks up all sorts of stuff … like these isopods.
BeeDuub
If anyone has seen the movie The Dark Crystal you will notice the similarity.
zav
Mmmmm delicious idopods. Actually, you will see a great similarity to pillbugs or sow bugs here. Go a little farther and you’ll see a similarity to horseshoe crabs. You’ve looking at some of the oldest creatures on earth, ones whose lineage has survived several world wide mass extinctions. Including that of the dinosaurs.
K!P
@biltmore: anny idea how lobsters are trapped? I agree that some fishing methods damage the sea, but lobsters are cauth in pods, not by dragging nets.
SueDunham
I came to make the same point as Biltmore. Scraping the ocean floor is extreme overfishing.
mistaj
They look like the giant armored bugs from THE DARK CRYSTAL. Therefore, they are awesome.
4thirty
im curious what kind of filter lets you see the bugs while its still dark inside. some kind of infrared setup?
Larfin Jackarse
I reckon they look like those attendant bugs to the brain in Starship Troopers. That’s what I reckon.
JetClarke
Okay, nerd alert, but the bugs in Dark Crystal were called the ‘Garthim’ and their boss the ‘Garthim Master’.
Woot! I welcome our Skeksis overlords!
Bruno
“Live Deep in the Ocean in Extremely Cold Temperatures”
The beauty is in the design. I think it’s spectacular.
I also think we ought to ban dragging as a method of fishing worldwide. It completely ruins the sea floor.
SD
It can’t taste any worse than other bottom dwellers like the lobsters and crabs, surely? They’re all just bugs of the sea that eat the crap at the bottom of the sea floor. I don’t know how anybody could eat those things in the first place anyways.
Frau
“I don’t know how anybody could eat those things in the first place anyways.”-SD
Cooked and wrapped in bacon?
When I saw the image I immediatley thought of “mud bugs” which we would eat in Australia.
Mr. Kris
the only reason they caught the Isopod 9 is that they were on vacation and took a wrong turn. FREE THE ISOPOD 9!!!
edvard
@Christophe, Zav and SD:
Check this Discover magazine article from about 9 years ago.
http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1511/is_8_20/ai_55248816/pg_1?t ag=artBody;col1
The deep-sea critters were mentioned and indeed they were reported to taste like sweet crab.
BTW, actual woodlice (roly-poly, pillbug, etc.) were reported to taste like urine.
Evilbeagle
Sweet crab? A little butter, garlic, a nice wine to accompany it and we’re in business. 
Seriously, they are pretty neat looking. I was reminded of a horseshoe crab when I saw the picture.
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