UCC team discovers cold-water coral

A UCC-led team of scientists has discovered a previously unseen cold-water coral. The find may double the amount previously thought to exist in Irish waters.

The discovery was made by scientists on the Marine Institute’s RV Celtic Explorer during a survey entitled the Quantifying Environmental Controls on Cold-water Coral Reef Growth.

While conducting the research on Irish cold-water coral reefs, Professor Andy Wheeler of UCC investigated a submerged vertical cliff 800m below the sea surface and found it covered in cold-water coral.

Prof Wheeler and his team have been investigating Irish cold-water coral reefs for over 15 years.

The coral reefs are found in the deep Atlantic and support a diverse and abundant ecosystem. While mapping and inspecting some previously unconfirmed reefs on the edge of the Porcupine Bank Canyon — 300km off Dingle, Co Kerry — the scientists decided to venture further into the canyon.

The Holland I remotely operated vehicle was manoeuvred from a depth of 2,100m in the middle of the canyon, up a wall to the coral reefs clustered around the canyon top at 700m depth.

The cliff face, never seen by humans before, was covered in corals and other associated organisms.

“These near vertical habitats hardly feature on maps yet can be hundreds of metres high and extend for tens of kilometres. This is a massive habitat, barely explored, yet full of ocean life. We found many species of coral, sponges, crabs and fish,” said Dr Agostina Vertino of the University of Milan-Bicocca.

Prof Wheeler said it was “not unfeasible there was over 100km square of coral habitat that was previously unaccounted for”.

The discovery site has already been designated a special area of conservation.