coral reefs found off coast of ireland

Sceala Clann Counsellor Location: NZ

very exciting news.
some of the living corals discovered off ireland stood up to 2 meters high, where heights of less than a half-meter would be more usual, the university said yesterday in a statement.
spectacular’ coral reefs discovered off ireland.

a ‘spectacular’ series of cold-water coral reefs have been found off the west coast of ireland, some rising 100 meters (330 feet) from the seabed, scientists said.
about 40 coral-covered mounds were discovered in a 200 square-kilometer (77 square-mile) stretch of sea at the southern end of porcupine bank in the atlantic ocean, the national university of ireland galway said.

“these are by far the most pristine, thriving and hence spectacular examples of cold-water coral reefs that i’ve encountered in almost 10 years of study in irish waters,” said anthony grehan, a zoologist at the school who led the research.

while coral reefs are more common in warm waters off australia, the maldives and caribbean, they have increasingly been found in cold waters, including at least 2,000 square kilometers of reef off norway, according to the united nations environment programme.

cold-water reefs are important because they provide feeding grounds and nursery areas for fish including commercial species, according to unep. larger warm-water reefs provide benefits including fisheries and coastal protection worth about $30 billion a year, the organization says.

some reefs were found by scientists to be in less-than pristine condition. threats to cold-water reefs include damage from bottom-fishing trawlers, oil and gas exploration, pollution and the installation of cables and pipelines.

the pacific, indian and atlantic oceans have all been found to contain cold-water corals, some encountered when fisherman brought back reef specimens that had been entangled in nets.

‘signs of damage’

“most reefs studied so far show signs of physical damage,” unep said of cold-water reefs on its web site. “slow growth rate indicates that if regeneration or recovery is possible at all, it might take decades to centuries for a damaged reef to regain its ecological function.”

cold-water corals grow 4 to 25 millimeters (0.2 to 1 inch) per year compared with as much as 150 millimeters for warm-water corals, according to unep.

some of the living corals discovered off ireland stood up to 2 meters high, where heights of less than a half-meter would be more usual, the university said yesterday in a statement.

because most cold-water reefs are damaged, the latest “pristine” reefs would make an “excellent” candidate for designation as a special conservation area, grehan said.

“there is also evidence of recent recruitment of corals and many other reef animals in the area, suggesting this area is an important source of larvae supply to other areas further along the porcupine bank,” grehan said.

the irish school carried out the study with the paris-based french research institute for exploitation of the sea.

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coral reefs found off coast of ireland