A research expedition off the coast of Argentina has uncovered a sprawling deep-sea coral reef covering roughly 0.4 square kilometers—an area nearly the size of Vatican City—along with 28 suspected new species. According to the Schmidt Ocean Institute, the discovery was made during a voyage aboard the research vessel Falkor (too) that traced the Argentine coastline from near Buenos Aires south toward Tierra del Fuego.
Deep-Sea Expedition Discovers Vast Cold-Water Coral Reef and 28 Potential New Species Off Argentina
Mapping the Bathelia Candida Reef
According to findings reported by the Schmidt Ocean Institute, the centerpiece of the discovery is a massive colony of the stony cold-water coral Bathelia candida. Researchers operating the remotely operated vehicle (ROV) SuBastian while searching for cold seeps found that the reef spans approximately 0.4 square kilometers (0.15 square miles), making it the largest known reef of its species in the ocean.
“We were not expecting to see this level of biodiversity in the Argentine deep sea, and are so excited to see it teeming with life,” marine scientist María Emilia Bravo of the University of Buenos Aires and Argentina’s National Scientific and Technical Research Council (CONICET) said in institute statements. Researchers found Bathelia colonies about 600 kilometers farther south than previously recorded, pushing the known latitude boundary of the species to roughly 43.5 degrees.
Uncovering 28 Suspected New Species
Alongside the massive coral structure, the expedition documented 28 animals believed to be entirely new to science. According to mission reports, these candidate species span several groups including worms, corals, sea urchins, sea snails, and sea anemones. Each candidate requires formal scientific description before official classification and naming.
“I would say that it is one of the most vibrant and lush environments in the deep sea that I’ve ever seen,” deep-sea biologist Santiago Herrera of Lehigh University told Mongabay. Herrera noted that because food becomes scarce at depth, finding dense animal communities interacting in a dynamic ecosystem came as a major surprise to the science team.
Rare Deep-Sea Sightings and a Whale Fall
The expedition also recorded several unusual deep-sea phenomena. The team filmed a rare giant phantom jellyfish, Stygiomedusa gigantea, which is known to trail ribbon-like arms as long as a school bus. Additionally, researchers located Argentina’s first documented deep-sea whale fall, discovering a sunken whale carcass resting roughly 2.4 miles beneath the surface that was already hosting scavengers.
