Scientists from New Zealand's National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research (NIWA) and Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa, recently undertook an ocean census expedition to map and explore Bounty Trough, an oceanic rift off New Zealand's south island. They discovered a hundred new ocean species.
The team spent 21 days at sea mapping and exploring the remote region. Using sonar mapping they produced detailed images of the trough and the seamounts beneath its surface along its 800km length. They also deployed sampling equipment to depths of almost 5,000 metres to search for new species.
Expedition leaders say they're confident they already have scores of new species of molluscs, three new species of fish, a potentially new genus of coral and a mystery find that could be a new group of octocoral.
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