Discover the Astounding Beauty of Two Newly Discovered Deep-Sea Coral Reefs near the Galápagos Islands

Around forty years back, a strong El Niño event resulted in the death of nearly all corals around the Galápagos due to warm waters. A majority of these coral reefs never managed to recover. However, in the recent months, scientists have stumbled upon enormous areas of flourishing corals in deeper waters that surround the equatorial islands.

In the month of April, a pristine deep coral reef, the first one to be found in the region and named Cacho De Coral, was documented by researchers. Topping an underwater volcano ridge, it extends roughly 250 meters. On the 26th of October, a second, considerably larger reef was discovered by a different team. This reef, extending over eight football fields, is more than 800 meters long.

The discovery offers a glimmer of hope in a time when coral reefs worldwide are under threat due to climate change. The coral reefs recently discovered within the Galápagos Islands Marine Reserve have so far managed to stay protected from human disruption and the direct effects of warming waters.

The latest reef was found during a thirty-day expedition by oceanographer Stuart Banks and his team. They embarked on this journey to explore parts of the ocean using a remotely controlled robot named SuBastian. During their trip to the Galápagos Islands Marine Reserve, which included a stop at Cacho De Coral, they spotted a second reef.

“It’s akin to discovering a basement in your house that you had no idea existed,” remarks Banks, who is affiliated with the Charles Darwin Research Station on Santa Cruz Island in the Galápagos. “And it’s full of incredible things.”

The newly discovered reefs reside in cold waters that extend up to 420 meters below the surface. This information was announced in a press release by the Schmidt Ocean Institute, a non-profit organization based in Palo Alto, California, that operates research vessels. This location has most likely contributed to the corals' untouched condition. Unlike corals that thrive in warm, shallow waters rich in sunlight that helps fuel symbiotic algae, deep-sea corals inhabit darker parts of the ocean that don’t heat up as rapidly under climate change.

It is rare to chance upon so much living coral in a single spot, and usually scientists need to get close to examine everything concealed inside rocky reefs, Banks notes. “Whenever we see these things for the first time, it’s always an amazing experience.”

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