DISCOVERIES

This year SOI was part of many new findings, observations, and paths to understanding. Here are some of the most outstanding discoveries in 2020.

Whipnose Anglerfish (Gigantactinidae sp.)

Dive 312 (Jan 27, 2020) | Bremer Canyon

The recording of this fish was the first time the genus was reported in Australia.

Natural Whale Fall

Dive 315 (Jan 31, 2020) | Bremer Canyon

A discovered whale fall (sunken whale carcass) was brought to the surface and contained numerous organisms, some of which may be new species.

Originally found in the Southern Ocean around Antarctica, the discovery of this coral off the West Coast of Australia demonstrates the influence of the Southern Ocean in some of Australia’s deep marine ecosystems.

[ Livestream dive ]

Pedestal-Shaped Coral Graveyard

Dive 327 (Feb 19, 2020) | Perth Canyon

Large coral graveyards like this pedestal-shaped one offer insight into environmental change over time and the history of Earth’s climate.

[ Livestream dive ]

A rare deep-sea hydroid was discovered by Dr Nerida Wilson (Chief Scientist, Western Australian Museum) and her team. This giant hydroid, approximately a meter high, was found at 2497 m in Cape Range Canyon using ROV SuBastian. Branchiocerianthus is a giant hydroid that consists of a single polyp on a long stem living on a sandy bottom. It is a close relative of corals, anemones and sea fans. Giant hydroids have never been observed in Australian waters before, so this one might be a new species.

Giant Hydroids (Branchiocerian thus sp.)

Dive 337 (Mar 15, 2020) | Cape Range Canyon

This giant hydroid, found at 2497 meters depth, was over a meter tall. Giant hydroids have never been observed in Australian waters before, so this one might be a new species.

Siphonophore (Apolemia sp.)

Dive 336 (Mar 16, 2020) | Cape Range Canyon

This siphonophore – recorded by ROV SuBastian is – thought to be the longest sea-creature in the world at 45 meters in length.

Faceless Cusk Eel (Typhlonus nasus)

Dive 341 (Mar 20, 2020) | Cape Range Canyon

The sighting of this eyeless fish was the deepest record of it, as well as the first time it was observed outside of Queensland and on the western side of the continent.

Glass Sponge Communities

Dive 342 (Mar 20, 2020) | Cape Range Canyon

Many old and new sponges were found, indicating a rich diversity and history in the area.

Taning’s Octopus Squid (Taningia danae)

Dive 343 (Mar 21, 2020) | Cape Range Canyon

This was the first observation of the species in Western Australia.

Leptoseris Coral Fields

Dive 365 (Jun 2, 2020) | South Diamond Islet

Leptoseris Coral Fields are well characterized in Hawaii but had never been observed in the Coral Sea until these dives.

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Pumpkin Star (Astrostarkus)

Dive 366 (Jun 6, 2020) | Lihou Reef

Identifying this particular species of “pumpkin star” (first described in 2004) during an ROV dive resulted in a substantial range extension for the species.

A striking image of Hollardia goslinei. This is a species of deepwater spike fishes native to Hawaii. ROV footage of this species occurring in Australia puts it very far away from its known 'home' range.

Deepwater Spike Fish (Hollardia goslinei)

Dive 368 (Jun 6, 2020) | Lihou Reef

This deepwater spike fish was thought to be native to Hawaii, but footage of the fish in Australian waters extended it significantly further from its original “home range.”

On this cruise the ROV SuBastian is spending a large portion of the dive to the bottom of the seafbed sampling life in the water column for Dr Dhugal Lindsay, Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology.

Midwater Jelly Survey

Dive 374 (Aug 6, 2020) | Cairns Seamount

The first survey conducted of midwater jellies in the South Pacific.

ROV SuBastian's manipulators gently grasp a black coral growing on a nautilus shell at a depth of 550 meters deep at Herald Cays. This black coral belongs to a family called Schizopathidae; however, experts suspect the genus might belong to an entirely different family. With this complete specimen researchers will finally be able to extract and sequence its DNA, comparing it with species from both families to see to which family it is most closely related.

New Black Coral Species

Dive 376 (Aug 7, 2020) | Herald Cays

Samples were taken of black coral and may reveal they belong to the family schizopathidae, but DNA sequencing may reveal they belongs to an entirely different family.

Deep-Sea Scleractinian & Soft Corals

Dive 390 (Aug 21, 2020) | Osprey Reef

The deepest specimens of soft and stony corals ever collected in the Coral Sea.

This Rhinopias agroliba is an exceedingly rare species in this genus and ROV SuBastian getting footage of it in near the Great Barrier Reef is an a range extension record for Australia. The fish appears to "walk" along the seafloor using its pectoral fins, and its motion in doing so has been described as "an awkward, lumbering gait." It is an ambush predator.

Walking Scorpionfish (Rhinopias agroliba)

Dive 392 (Aug 24, 2020) | Tregrosse Reefs

The first-ever recording of this rare species of walking scorpionfish in Australia significantly extended its range.

Fiery Siphonophore

Dive 393 (Sep 30, 2020) | Northeast Fraser Island

This brilliant, bright orange siphonophore is thought to potentially be a new species.

Dumbo Octopus (Grimpoteuthis sp.)

Dive 395 (Oct 5, 2020) | Noggin Canyon

The team spotted a dumbo octopus that was displaying highly unusual behavior. Researchers are still unsure what was happening, though many speculate it could have been predating upon another octopus or holding onto a mate.

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Short-Tail Catshark (Parmaturus bigus)

Dive 399 (Oct 17, 2020) | Southern Small Detached Reef

The short-tail catshark is one of the rarest species of sharks in the world, known from a single specimen collected from the southern Coral Sea. We documented three new specimens of this shark throughout the year.

500m Detached Reef

Dive 401 (Oct 25, 2020) | Southern Detached Reef

A geologic structure of this kind and size had not been discovered in the Great Barrier Reef for the past 120 years.

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Ram’s Horn Squid (Spirula spirula)

Dive 402 (Oct 26, 2020) | Wreck Bay Plunge Pool

The Ram’s Horn Squid is well known for its spiral shell, that washes up on beaches around the world. However, no scientist has seen this animal alive in its natural environment until ROV SuBastian recorded footage of it during a midwater dive.

FK200126-large-coral-with-interesting-fish and associates-Dive-grab-hoffmanFRAME-001805

New Deep Sea Coral Ecosystems

Dive 312-331 (Overall Expedition) | Perth, Bremer, & Leeuwin Canyons

Multiple new types of deep-sea coral ecosystems were uncovered in Western Australia throughout the expedition.

RV Falkor multibeam mapping coverage in the Capricorn Channel reveals past beaches, shorelines and broad shoals which indicate where sea level was positioned at the end of the last Ice Age. Sediment grab samples on the Capricorn Shoals contained abundant relict (fossil) ooids, a special type of spherical layered sand grain that only forms under specific environmental conditions.

Capricorn Ridge

R/V Falkor and team fully mapped a distinctive cliff feature at approximately 200 meters depth; it is thought to be the southernmost extent of the ~20 million-year-old base of the Great Barrier Reef.

Sediment sampling is an important part of the study of the Ice Age Geology of the Great Barrier Reef. It is also an opportunity for the science team to look for ÔOoidsÕ. Ooids form over thousands of years in very shallow ocean depths. They make up much of the beautiful Bahamas Bank in the Caribbean. Ooid have also been found along the sandy shoals of the Capricorn Channel in the Coral Sea. Finding ooids in such deep water helps the science team to learn about the ancient geological makeup of the Great Barrier and it also shows that during the last Ice Age, the ocean was very shallow in that region and the Australian coastline would have looked very different than it does today.

Presence of Ooids

Capricorn Channel

The presence of ooids (a sediment grain made from calcium carbonate) in deep water provides insight into the ancient geological makeup of the Great Barrier Reef and gives insight into historic sea levels.

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