Brittlestars, sea anemones and a catshark among new-to-science species collected during expedition off the Queensland coast
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Marine scientists have discovered more than 110 new fish and invertebrate species in the Coral Sea – a figure they believe could exceed 200 as more are identified.
The species were found in waters between 200 metres and 3km deep in the Coral Sea marine park, Australia’s largest marine protected area, which spans nearly 1m sq km to the east of the Great Barrier Reef.
The new-to-science species – including brittlestars, crabs, sea anemones and sponges – were collected during a 35-day voyage on the CSIRO’s Investigator research vessel, which set sail from Brisbane last October. It travelled as far as Mellish Reef, about 1,000km off the Queensland coast.
