Researchers were left stunned when they discovered a new \u201cdemon cavefish\u201d in a highly-studied cave beneath a US Army post in Alabama. <\/p>\n
Scientists from the University of Alabama in Huntsville (UAH) uncovered a new genus of cavefish that is eyeless, colorless and faintly electric blue in life, according to a UAH press release from July. \u00a0<\/a><\/p>\n The new genus, formally known as Demogorgonichthys arcanus, but aptly dubbed \u201cdemon cavefish,\u201d was discovered in Bobcat Cave \u2014 under the US Army\u2019s Redstone Arsenal in Huntsville. <\/p>\n Researchers discovered the Demogorgonichthys arcanus, commonly known as the \u201cDemon Cavefish\u201d in a highly-studied cave system in Alabama. Jam Press\/Matthew L. Niemiller, Niemiller Nature LLC<\/p>\n Demogorgonichthys references the mythological underworld figure \u201cDemogorgon\u201d known through the game \u201cDungeons & Dragons\u201d and the Netflix show \u201cStranger Things\u201d \u2014 while arcanus means \u201chidden\u201d or \u201csecret,\u201d according to UAH.<\/p>\n The newly discovered \u201cdemon cavefish\u201d represents an entirely new genus and species. Jam Press\/Matthew L. Niemiller, Niemiller Nature LLC<\/p>\n Combined, the scientific name reflects the cryptic species\u2019 underground habitat and decades-long concealment in the cave system.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cThis is one of the last places we\u2019d have bet on it,\u201d the study\u2019s lead author Dr. Matthew L. Niemiller said.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cFinding an entirely unknown, new genus of freshwater fish in eastern North America today is a little like finding a new kind of big cat,\u201d he quipped.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cThe group is so well known, we thought the big surprises were behind us.\u201d<\/p>\n The UAH researchers, as part of the University of Alabama System, published their findings in Scientific Reports in July<\/a> in collaboration with researchers from three other regional universities.<\/p>\n Shockingly, the pool in which the \u201cdemon cavefish\u201d was discovered, is home to \u201cSouthern Cavefish\u201d \u2014 yet the two species are not close relatives.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cThis is the part I find most remarkable,\u201d Niemiller says, adding that the two species \u201cfound its own separate way into the underground world and lost its eyes and pigment independently, millions of years apart.\u201d<\/p>\n Bobcat Cave in Alabama is one of the most highly-studied cave systems in the US. Jam Press\/Matthew L. Niemiller, Niemiller Nature LLC<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s a vivid case of convergent evolution,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n The Bobcat Cave system has been monitored \u201cat least quarterly\u201d for over 30 years.<\/p>\n \u201cTo have one turn up in a cave we\u2019ve watched for three decades is a real reminder to stay curious. It was genuinely surprising,\u201d Niemiller added.\u00a0<\/p>\n The \u201cdemon cavefish\u201d is less than 2-inches long. Jam Press\/Matthew L. Niemiller, Niemiller Nature LLC<\/p>\n