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In April 2023, marine scientists aboard the research vessel Falkor used the Alvin to explore between 400 and 600 meters. They discovered ancient cold-water coral reefs on an unmapped underwater mountain called a seamount. These new reefs stretch several kilometers across the top of the mountain, which means they are very large and important.
Between 50 and 60 percent of the coral is alive, and it shelters fish, squat lobsters, and sea fans. Because the Galápagos Marine Reserve recently its boundaries, these reefs are completely safe from bottom-trawling nets. Scientists are excited because they can now study a deep-sea that has never been damaged by humans.
