研究人员在南澳大利亚深海礁石中发现了一个新属鱼类Australyichthys，包括盔头海木偶、公牛颈海木偶和悖论海木偶三个新物种[1]。这些鱼类虽然外形酷似海马，但通过微CT扫描和DNA测序的研究证实，它们在进化上与真正的海马无关，而是收敛进化的结果[1]。Australyichthys没有海马特有的融合骨板和冠状骨结构，DNA证据表明其为海马最近亲的分支外物种[1]。
盔头海木偶标本于2006年在南澳大利亚斯宾塞湾附近的甘比尔群岛在50至125米深度被误捕获[1]。这一新属鱼类的已知标本极为稀少，全属仅有7个标本分散在超过2500公里的海岸线上，采集时间跨越约65年，且近20年未有新的采集记录[1]。相关研究已发表在《失落物种杂志》上[1]，揭示了大自然独立进化出相似身体结构的又一案例。
Researchers have identified a previously unknown genus of fish that closely resembles seahorses but evolved independently of them, demonstrating a striking example of convergent evolution in marine life.[1] The new genus, named Australyichthys, comprises three species—A. aegis (helmeted seahorse puppet), A. minotaur (bull-necked seahorse puppet), and A. paradoxus (paradox seahorse puppet)—discovered through museum specimens collected from deep-sea reefs off South Australia.[1]
The specimens were captured incidentally through trawling and dredging operations at depths between 50 and 125 meters, with the first specimen of A. aegis collected in 2006 near the Gambier Islands in Spencer Bay.[1] Remarkably, only seven specimens of the entire genus are known to science, scattered across more than 2,500 kilometers of coastline and accumulated over approximately 65 years, with no new specimens collected in the past 20 years.[1] Through micro-computed tomography scanning and DNA sequencing, scientists confirmed that despite their seahorse-like appearance, Australyichthys species lack the fused bony plates and crown-like structures characteristic of true seahorses, and genetic analysis places them outside the seahorse lineage.[1] The findings were published in the Journal of Lost Species and underscore how different species can independently evolve similar body structures in response to comparable environmental pressures.[1]
