See it: New guitar-shaped shark species discovered, along with 866 other marine wildlife
One of the more unique discoveries is the "Guitar shark" – a shark species that resembles a guitar-like figure. It was identified at a depth of 600 feet (200 meters) off the coast of Mozambique and Tanzania by world-renowned shark expert David Ebert.
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The largest global mission to discover ocean life has found over 800 new marine species, including a new guitar-shaped shark species.
The discoveries were from the efforts of the Nippon Foundation-Nekton Ocean Census, the world's largest collaborative of over 800 scientists across 400 institutions to accelerate the discovery of new marine life.
The identification and official registration of a new species can take over 13 years, which means some species may go extinct before being documented. Scientists say new reforms can speed up the process.
Identified at around 200m depths off Mozambique and Tanzania by world-renowned shark expert David Ebert. (The Nippon Foundation-Nekton Ocean Census / Sergey Bogorodsky)
"Too many species remain in limbo for years because the process of formally describing them is too slow," said Prof. Lucy Woodall, Head of Science at Ocean Census. "We urgently need to change that and adding the Species Discovery step gives us a way to rapidly start the process."
One of the more unique discoveries is the "Guitar shark" – a shark species that resembles a guitar-like figure. It was identified at a depth of 600 feet (200 meters) off the coast of Mozambique and Tanzania by world-renowned shark expert David Ebert.
This is only the 38th known guitar shark species discovered worldwide. Two-thirds of the species are threatened due to such low numbers.
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Additional new species such as shark, sea butterfly, mud dragon, bamboo coral, water bear, octocoral, sponge, shrimp, crab, reef fish, squat lobster, pipehorse, limpet, hooded shrimp, sea spiders, and brittle stars have been discovered/registered. All told, the census announced the discovery of 866 new marine species.
To make these new discoveries, officials say all resources must be used wisely while observing these deep sea creatures. Using divers, submersibles, and remotely operated vehicles (ROVs), new species can be discovered from depths as deep as 1 to 16,400 feet.
"The ocean covers 71% of our planet, yet it is said that only around 10% of marine life has been discovered so far, leaving an estimated 1–2 million species still undocumented," said Executive Director Mitsuyuki Unno of The Nippon Foundation. "These latest findings demonstrate how international collaboration can advance our understanding of ocean biodiversity."