Scientists discover thousands of giant eggs in an underwater volcano—and they're alive

 Scientists and divers have made some of the coolest underwater discoveries worldwide in recent years. From mysterious underwater crop circles created by a threatened species to archeologists discovering thousands of ancient marble slabs submerged in the "Las Vegas of the Roman Empire" in the park of Baiae in Naples, Italy, these discoveries have revealed much about the Earth’s history.

Some findings, including an underwater discovery between Greenland and Iceland, could even predict catastrophic global conditions in the future. In 2019, scientists uncovered yet another amazing find near Vancouver Island in Canada. They discovered thousands of giant eggs inside an underwater volcano once believed to be extinct.

This is not the only time scientists have discovered eggs. In 2021, researchers found fully intact 80-million-year-old dinosaur eggs outside Ganzhou City in China. However, instead of fossils, these eggs that scientists uncovered off the coast of Vancouver Island were alive.

Scientists Discovered Thousands Of Giant Live Eggs In An Underwater Volcano Near Canada’s Vancouver Island

For years, scientists believed the underwater volcano off Canada’s Vancouver Island coast had already become extinct and that the water surrounding it was too cold to support much marine life. However, researchers revealed a much different reality during a 2019 expedition led by deep-sea marine biologist Cherisse Du Preez of Fisheries and Oceans Canada. Du Preez's team found that what was previously thought to be only a seamount is actually an active volcano that releases warm, mineral-rich water.

The geothermal heat from the volcano alone was a surprising discovery, but researchers found something even more unbelievable. Across the volcano’s summit, almost one mile below the surface, the team uncovered thousands of giant eggs belonging to a deep-sea species called the Pacific white skate.

Why Did A Deep Sea Creature Lay Thousands Of Eggs In An Underwater Volcano?

The Pacific white skate, which thrives in the cold Pacific Ocean waters, is rarely studied since it lives so far down. While scientists have limited knowledge of this species, they do know that one of its unusual features is its immense egg size of about 1.5 feet across. The creature's eggs are also uniquely shaped like purses, gaining the nickname "mermaid purses."

Female Pacific white skates exert enormous energy to produce large eggs that provide essential nutrients and help give their young the best chance at survival. Du Preez believes that the skates use the geothermal heat from the underwater volcano as a natural incubator to speed up the four-year gestation period.

"It takes four years for the young to develop. The warm water likely speeds up the gestation period of the eggs, resulting in more successful juveniles. The shallow summit of the seamount is almost a coral garden and a safe nursery for juveniles to grow before they descend to the deep," Du Preez told Live Science.

This isn't the first time scientists have observed this behavior. In 2018, researchers found similar eggs near hydrothermal vents in the Galápagos Islands.

During this survey, 157 skate eggs were uncovered near the Iguanas-Pinguinos hydrothermal vent field. Although these eggs resembled those of the Pacific white skate species, they were much smaller, measuring just over four inches long.

Despite the size difference, scientists in the Galápagos Islands reached the same conclusion as the Fisheries and Oceans Canada team: The female Pacific white skates use hydrothermal vents as nurseries to aid in the gestation process.

What’s Next For Scientists Studying The Underwater Volcano?

After the 2019 discovery of giant Pacific white skate eggs in an underwater volcano near Vancouver Island, researchers reshaped their understanding of how deep-sea species adapt despite their harsh environments.

Most recently, in 2023, Du Preez went back to the site to conduct more research. During their two weeks at sea, the team captured live footage of a Pacific white skate laying an egg and obtained evidence of more than one skate species utilizing the same volcanic nursing ground.

Fisheries and Oceans Canada scientists plan to monitor the area closely in the future, protecting the seamount and the surrounding ecosystem from harmful over-fishing.

Their ongoing research underscores just how critical this rare volcanic nursery may be—not only for Pacific white skates, but for multiple deep-sea species that appear to rely on its unique conditions to reproduce. As scientists continue to study the site, they hope to better understand how geothermal warmth and isolation create pockets of life in otherwise extreme environments.