Coral Reef Flourishing With Life Discovered Near Ecuador’s Galapagos Islands

HOV Alvin’s manipulator arm collects samples from rocky outcrop at the crest of a ridge, populated by cold water corals, squat lobsters, anemones, basket stars and deep-sea fish. Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution news release

Scientists have discovered an unknown coral reef with flourishing marine life off Ecuador’s Galápagos Islands, the country’s environment minister said.

“A deepwater scientific expedition has found the first totally pristine coral reef, approximately two kilometres long, at 400 metres [deep], on the summit of a submarine mountain,” Environment Minister Jose Davalos announced in a Twitter thread on Monday. “Galapagos surprises us again!”

The two-kilometre reef —located on the summit of a submarine mountain formed by volcanic activity—was found to be in pristine condition.

The discovery came as a surprise to the exploration team, who believed that there was only one reef that was able to survive the El Niño weather cycle in 1982 and 1983 along the coast of the tiny Darwin Island.

Having more than 50 percent of living coral, the reef is home to an array of deep-sea fish, sharks and rays, as well as pink octopus, batfish and squat lobsters, according to Michelle Taylor, a marine biologist at Essex University and co-lead of the scientific team onboard the US Navy-owned research vessel Atlantis.

A new coral reef was discovered off the coast of Ecuador's Galapagos Islands. Jose Davalos/Twitter

A diversity of sea creatures was found on the newly discovered coral reef off the coast of Ecuador's Galapagos Islands. Jose Davalos/Twitter

She said the newly discovered reef could be deemed a “global significance.”

“Dead coral skeletons making up the remaining 80 to 90 percent still provide homes for a huge diversity of life, which is less reliant on the live sections of coral,” she said.

“However, the reefs we’ve found in the last few days have 50 to 60 percent live coral in many areas, which is very rare indeed.

Senior marine researcher Stuart Banks at the Charles Darwin Foundation in the Galápagos Islands said the coral is several thousand years old at least.

He added that said the discovery is “very important at a global level” at a time when many deepwater systems are degraded.

“The captivating thing about these reefs is they are very old and essentially pristine, unlike those found in many other parts of the world’s oceans,” he noted.

“This gives us reference points to understand their importance for marine natural biodiversity heritage, connectivity with regional MPAs, as well as their role in providing goods and services such as carbon cycling and fisheries.”