Back in March of 2022, scientists from Hanoi University bought several supergiant isopods of the genus Bathynomus from restaurants and fishermen in Quy Nhơn City – and no, not for eating.

Like other giant isopods, B. vaderi is a carnivore and is known to eat crab, shrimp, fish, sponges, squid, and munch on whale carcasses. So far, it has only been found near the Spratly Islands in ...

This is the third supergiant isopod species discovered in the South China Sea since 2017, researchers said. Photo by Huang M-C, Kawai T (2025) At a fishing port in Taiwan, researchers bought four ...

The head of Bathynomus vaderi, a newly described species of giant isopod found in Southeast Asian waters Nguyen Thanh Son. Move aside, lobster—a newly described giant isopod from Vietnam is now ...

This is the third supergiant isopod species discovered in the South China Sea since 2017, researchers said. Photo by Huang M-C, Kawai T (2025) At a fishing port in Taiwan, researchers bought four ...

Bathynomus isopods are divided into two size-based groups, researchers said. Giant species are 5.9 inches or shorter, while supergiants are anything greater than 6.7 inches long.

This is the third supergiant isopod species discovered in the South China Sea since 2017, researchers said. Photo by Huang M-C, Kawai T (2025) At a fishing port in Taiwan, researchers bought four ...

Bathynomus isopods are divided into two size-based groups, researchers said. Giant species are 5.9 inches or shorter, while supergiants are anything greater than 6.7 inches long.

This is the third supergiant isopod species discovered in the South China Sea since 2017, researchers said. Photo by Huang M-C, Kawai T (2025) At a fishing port in Taiwan, researchers bought four ...

Bathynomus isopods are divided into two size-based groups, researchers said. Giant species are 5.9 inches or shorter, while supergiants are anything greater than 6.7 inches long.