866 new marine species discovered, revealing ocean’s hidden wonders

Among the 866 newly discovered species are a guitar-shaped shark, a fan-like coral, and a venomous deep-sea snail with harpoon-like teeth, all part of an extensive effort to document marine life, a recent study revealed.

These species were identified through divers, piloted submersibles, and remotely operated vehicles across 10 ocean expeditions. All have been confirmed as new to science, according to Ocean Census, a global initiative focused on protecting sea life, which recently released its first major update since its 2023 launch.

Michelle Taylor, a coral expert at the University of Essex and a principal investigator with Ocean Census, emphasized the vast potential for discovery.

"Probably only 10% of marine species have been discovered," Taylor told CNN from aboard the Schmidt Ocean Institute’s Falkor research vessel during a 35-day expedition to the South Sandwich Islands in the southern Atlantic Ocean.

"And for the species that have been discovered … with Ocean Census, it’s across such a wide variety of taxa; so everything from sharks to pipefish to gastropods (such as snails) to my own beautiful, little corals," the coral expert added.

The new species were discovered at depths ranging from 3 feet (1 meter) to 3.1 miles (4,990 meters), with analysis carried out by scientists from the Ocean Census Science Network, which includes over 800 researchers from 400 institutions.

"This is an area of the world that’s very remote," she said. "It took eight days on the boat from southern Chile to get here. It’s very rarely visited."

As a coral expert, Taylor highlighted an elegant octocoral, found in the Maldives, as one of her favorite discoveries. It has eight tentacles and is softer and more flexible than other corals.

Researchers from Ocean Census also found the guitar shark, a species from the Rhinobatos family, near Mozambique and Tanzania. This shark has a special shape that looks like both a shark and a ray.

"Shark species; their numbers are dropping dramatically in every ocean of the world, so to discover a new species is quite special," Taylor said.

A separate expedition discovered new species, including a limpet, a marine mollusk with a conical shell, and a sea star in the polar waters of the Norwegian-Greenland Sea, at a depth of 10,000 feet (3,053 meters).

These creatures thrive in an environment with extreme temperature fluctuations, ranging from near-freezing to areas close to hydrothermal vent fluids exceeding 572 degrees Fahrenheit (300°C).

A notable discovery was the predatory gastropod Turridrupa magnifica, a deep-sea snail that injects toxins into its prey. The venom of related species has led to medical breakthroughs, including pain treatments.

New technologies like genetic sequencing speed up species identification, but scientists still need physical specimens, making confirmation slow. Many Ocean Census discoveries remain unnamed, though the project aims to identify 100,000 species in 10 years.

“Going through the academic peer review process… can take such an extraordinary length of time that it’s almost impeding that knowledge,” Taylor said.

“With extraordinary challenges facing our marine environments… we do have to start finding quicker ways.”