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Marine biologist Kat Bolstad holds a twig of endangered black coral, which was discarded as bycatch from a deep water trawler in international waters in the Tasman Sea.
Enlarge imageAll evidence indicates that deep water life forms are very slow to recover from bottom trawling, taking decades to hundreds of years, if they recover at all.
Scientists estimate that there are between 30,000–100,000 seamounts scattered throughout the oceans, though less than 1 per cent have been properly explored and documented. One study of an area half the size of a tennis court found 898 species, more than half of these were new to science.
Investigations are underway to study the biomedical properties of deep sea organisms and their potential in the treatment of cancer and other diseases. It has already been found that Gorgonian corals produce antibiotics and some corals are so close to human bone that they can be used for bone grafts.
Despite deep-sea research being extremely expensive and difficult to conduct, scientists know that the deep-sea, especially seamounts, are teaming with weird and wonderful life.
Scientists fear that bottom trawling is significantly altering fragile deep-sea ecosystems, potentially with severe and unpredictable consequences. They are worried that humans are wiping out unknown worlds before they can be studied.
Scientists estimate that there are between 30,000–100,000 seamounts scattered throughout the oceans, though less than 1 per cent have been properly explored and documented. One study of an area half the size of a tennis court found 898 species, more than half of these were new to science.
Investigations are underway to study the biomedical properties of deep sea organisms and their potential in the treatment of cancer and other diseases. It has already been found that Gorgonian corals produce antibiotics and some corals are so close to human bone that they can be used for bone grafts.
Despite deep-sea research being extremely expensive and difficult to conduct, scientists know that the deep-sea, especially seamounts, are teaming with weird and wonderful life.
Scientists fear that bottom trawling is significantly altering fragile deep-sea ecosystems, potentially with severe and unpredictable consequences. They are worried that humans are wiping out unknown worlds before they can be studied.
