Eight new species discovered in sealed cave

ISRAELI scientists have discovered an ancient ecosystem containing eight previously unknown species in a lake inside a cave, sheltered from the outside world for millions of years.

The newly discovered crustaceans and invertebrates were found last month in a cave near the city of Ramle in central Israel, team leader Amos Frumkin announced.

“This is a very unique ecosystem that is completely isolated from the surface,” said Dr Frumkin, a cave researcher in the geography department of Hebrew University in Jerusalem.

The cave, 328 feet below ground in a limestone quarry, includes tunnels that extend about a mile and a half. Inside, a large underground lake holds the previously unknown species, some similar to scorpions and shrimp.

Allen Collins, a research fellow at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, said the find “underscores how little we know about life on our planet and how important it is to keep looking”.

“I imagine this is a unique situation, to have a cave system with both marine and freshwater systems and it is quite interesting in an underground situation,” he said.

“The scorpion-like creatures as well as the shrimp-like creatures that were found are unique.”

The animals had been sheltered from the outside world by a thick layer of chalk that was impenetrable to water or exterior nutrients, Dr Frumkin said.

Aside from one scorpion-like creature, all other species discovered were found alive. None were more than two inches long.

Frumkin said similar caves had been discovered in Romania and Mexico, but none was as isolated. Unlike most animals, which depend on the photosynthesis food chain, the newly discovered species live off a completely independent and self-sustaining ecosystem.

Israel Naaman, Dr Frumkin’s research assistant, made the initial discovery. He had been conducting a survey of caves when he came across a small hole that just kept growing.

“I thought it was just a small hole and I couldn’t believe what I had found; surprise after surprise,” he said.

When one of the volunteer staff crouched down to measure the temperature of the warm, sulphuric water, he suddenly jumped up and yelled: “There is something moving here.”

Mr Naaman said the species were probably endangered from oxygen exposure during the discovery process but said he was confident in the scientific importance of the find. He believes further exploration will reveal additional new life forms.

The Israeli researchers have shared their findings with international experts for further review and classification and hope to publish their conclusions soon.