The Challenge of Depth: Describing and Protecting Deep-Sea Species

Over 70% of Earth’s surface is ocean, and 90% of that is deep sea, defined as depths greater than 200 meters. We have greatly increased our knowledge of certain deep-sea habitats over the past 150 years of deep-sea science, however much remains to be discovered and studied. It’s estimated that over 90% of marine species are still unknown, with deep-sea species representing the most underexplored group. At the same time, threats such as climate change, oil and gas extraction, bottom trawl fisheries, and planned deep-sea mining increasingly threaten this important habitat and its inhabitants. Why is this the case, and what’s being done to change it?

The Difficulty of Describing Deep-Sea Species

Studying deep-sea life is an expensive and resource-intensive endeavor. To collect specimens, researchers must launch costly expeditions involving specialized vessels, submersible equipment, and expert teams, which can amount to millions of Euros for just one mission. But collecting specimens is only the beginning.

Deep-sea organisms are fragile and often damaged or degraded during collection, complicating both morphological and genetic analysis. Once samples return to shore, the real work begins: sorting, identifying, and describing what can number in the hundreds of thousands of specimens.

Even when a new species is discovered, formally describing it, which involves giving it a scientific name and publishing, can take 20 to 40 years. Taxonomic research is underfunded, and institutions often lack the capacity to keep pace. As a result, many new species remain undescribed, sitting on the shelves of collection rooms.

Problems with Protecting Deep-Sea Species

Once an animal has a species name, it is much easier to protect, especially through conservation tools like IUCN Red List, the world’s most comprehensive information source on the global extinction risk status of species.

However, even with a name, conservation is challenging. Red List assessments require data on threats and habitat-specific impacts – information that’s often lacking for deep-sea species. Many assessment methods were not designed with marine animals in mind, resulting in dramatic underrepresentation in assessments and conservation action. Of the 169,400 species assessed by the IUCN, only 130 are from the deep sea – just 0.077%.

The Senckenberg Ocean Species Alliance (SOSA)

The Senckenberg Research Institute and Natural History Museum is centered on biodiversity research. In 2022, it launched the Senckenberg Ocean Species Alliance (SOSA) project with the aim to accelerate the description, protection and awareness of marine invertebrate species, including deep-sea species.

SOSA’s Discovery service expedites the taxonomic process by helping scientists publish new species more efficiently. The service provides essential data such as macrophotography, electron microscopy, scientific illustrations, genetic data, and a streamlined path to publication in Ocean Species Discoveries, an article series focused solely on taxonomy. This eliminates the need to bundle species descriptions with additional background information, which for many newly-discovered species is not yet available and thus delays publication.

SOSA is also working to increase the number of marine invertebrates on the Red List by creating innovative methods for assessment. The Red List team is working with threatened habitats, like hydrothermal vent ecosystems, as a way to better and more quickly assess the numerous species that live in these unique habitats. SOSA’s engagement team is working to bring visibility to these efforts and inspire the public and policymakers to support ocean conservation regulations and action.

Learn more about the SOSA project and get involved: https://sosa.senckenberg.de