The Hermaphrodite at the Bottom of the Sea

In the abyssal plains off the coast of California lives a species of worm with exceptionally wide lips. That’s not the only thing that distinguishes these newly identified creatures from their peers; the discovering scientists also note Yoda demiankoopi’s “infrequent defecation events.” And, to complete their deep-sea dating profile: In addition to being named after a Star Wars character, they have both male and female sex organs. These worms have a lot going for them.

are bottom-dwellers, filtering calories out of the snow of organic debris that sifts down from the creatures living and dying closer to the surface. Those are the wispiest of table scraps, but by minimizing movement so as to save energy, they have made a life for themselves in a frigid, pitch-black world where the pressure is 250