What New Sponge Discoveries Mean
Castello Branco said scientists still don’t know how many species of deep-sea sponges they have left to discover, but they know it’s a big number. When scientists discover a new genus or species, they are describing the planet’s marine biodiversity, or the variety of organisms living in the ocean. All of the organisms in the ocean are interconnected, she explained, and by documenting and describing marine biodiversity, scientists are building a better understanding of marine life and the impact of humans on the ocean.
And there is no doubt that humans are having an impact.
“Despite the fact that we still have loads to learn about this environment, we (humans) are already exploiting it increasingly, with the gas and oil, mining, and fishing industries. These activities cause high impact in these habitats and their biodiversity (to a large extent still unknown to science and society),” Castello Branco told Gizmodo.
