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Orange bamboo coral found 5,745 feet below the surface. Photo courtesy of the Hawai‘i Deep-Sea Coral Expedition 2007/NOAA.
New Bamboo Corals Discovered
Working among the islands of Papahanaumokuakea Marine National Monument, scientists using a Hawai'i Undersea Research Laboratory submersible research vessel surveyed deep-sea corals thousands of feet below the ocean surface. Discoveries include seven new species of bamboo coral identified so far.
Six of these species may represent entirely new genera, a remarkable feat given the broad classification a genus represents. Scientists expect to identify more new species as analysis of samples continues. The discoveries are important because scientists can study the effects of ocean acidification over time. Deep-sea bamboo corals produce growth rings much as trees do, and can provide a much-needed view of how deep ocean conditions change through time
Finding new species was not an express purpose of the research mission, but Manoa Associate Professor Christopher Kelley and Stanford University’s Rob Dunbar, both collected specimens that looked unusual. Kelley’s objective was to locate and predict locations of high density deep-sea coral beds in the monument.
“The potential for more discoveries is high, but these deep-sea corals are not protected everywhere as they are here, and can easily be destroyed,” says Kelly.