A Tiny Blue Octopus Found in the Deep Sea Off the Galápagos

Far beneath the waves off the Galápagos Islands, scientists have identified a new species of octopus so small and so blue that even a seasoned expert was taken aback. Described on May 25, 2026, Microeledone galapagensis is about the size of a golf ball and was found near Darwin Island at a depth of roughly 1,773 meters, nearly 5,800 feet below the surface.

The little creature was first glimpsed back in 2015 during a deep-sea expedition aboard the exploration vessel E/V Nautilus, whose remotely operated vehicle recorded footage of the seafloor and collected a single specimen. After years of careful work, the octopus made its way to the Field Museum in Chicago, where researchers finally gave it a name in a paper published in the journal Zootaxa.

“Described on May 25, 2026, Microeledone galapagensis is about the size of a golf ball and was found near Darwin Island at a depth of roughly 1,773 meters, nearly 5,800 feet below the surface.”

What makes the find remarkable is how thoroughly it broke the rules. Its small size, vivid blue color, and equatorial Pacific home all clashed with the established definition of its family, the Megaleledonidae, whose members were thought to live mainly in cold polar waters. Rather than force the new octopus to fit, the scientists rewrote the family’s diagnostic description to make room for it. Lead author Janet Voight, describing her first new octopus species after more than four decades of study, said she had never seen anything like it.

Because only one specimen was collected, the team used non-destructive micro-CT scanning instead of dissection, preserving the precious animal intact. It is a reminder of how much of the deep ocean remains unmapped, and of the patient, careful science it takes to know it. Each new name is a small celebration of a planet still full of surprises, waiting quietly in the dark for curious minds to find them.