The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest ocean basin on Earth. Scientists have little idea how many different organisms live in these deep oceans. Many of these areas are remote and difficult to explore, but that hasn’t stopped efforts to discover what actually lurks under the sea. It was discovered in February by a team of researchers exploring the Bounty Trough off the coast of New Zealand. Approximately 100 new and potentially new marine species.
Team members of the non-profit organization Ocean Census New Zealand National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research (NIWA) and New Zealand Museum Te Papa Tongarewa collected nearly 1,800 samples during the three-week expedition. Some of the specimens are Found at depths of over 15,000 feet.
“We seem to have a large number of new and undiscovered species,” says Alex Rogers, Marine Census scientific lead and expedition co-leader. stated in a statement. “By the time all the specimens have been tested, there will be over 100 new species. But what really struck me here is the fact that this extends to animals like fish, and we believes he has discovered three new species of fish.”
The researchers also discovered dozens of new molluscs, shrimp and cephalopods, a type of predatory mollusk. According to the marine censusCurrently, 240,000 marine species are known, with an average of 2,200 discovered each year.
[Related: See the strange new species discovered near Chile—with the help of a deep-diving sea robot.]
One discovery was particularly perplexing to experts working to identify the new species. Initially, the research team thought it was a new species of sea anemone or starfish, but taxonomists do not believe it is either of those species.
“We now think it may be a new species of Yao coral, but we also think it’s a new genus.” [wider grouping of species]” Michaela Mitchell, Queensland Museum Network Taxonomist stated in a statement. “More interestingly, it could be an entirely new group outside of the octocorals. If so, it would be an important discovery in the deep sea and a clearer picture of this planet’s unique biodiversity.” It gives us a complete picture.”
[Related: Four new octopus species discovered in the deep-sea vents off Costa Rica.]
expedition to Unexplored waters such as the Bounty Trough This is important for discovering new species. The Bounty Trough is a basin approximately 500 miles long east of New Zealand’s South Island. Before, Geologists investigated this extremely deep ocean basinBut this is a first for biologists.
“We went to different habitats and discovered all kinds of new species, from fish to snails to corals to sea cucumbers. These are really interesting species and new ones coming to science,” says NIWA Marine Life. says scholar Sadie Mills. said in a statement.
At the beginning of February 2024 Expedition, the team created a map of the area using an imagination system and a video camera. This was an effort to ensure that their equipment and cameras operated safely and did not harm vulnerable animal communities. To collect the specimens, a sampling device called a was used. brenkesled. Two nets are used, one near the ocean floor and one about 3 feet above the other. It drags along the floor and scrapes up animals that live near the ocean floor. Using baited nets, we located several large animals in the trough.
The specimens will be housed in the NIWA Invertebrate Collection (NIC) and the Mollusc and Fish Collection at National Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa. The survey results are also posted below. New Zealand Marine Biota Future editions of the NIWA Biodiversity Memoir.
