At 500 meters deep in Canyon Dohrn del Gulf of Naples one was discovered large white coral reef very rare in the Mediterranean Sea: it was revealed by a group of researchers involved in the scientific expedition “Demeter”aboard the research vessel Gaia Blu of the CNR (National Research Center). The discovery was made thanks to a vehicle submarine remotely operated vehicle (ROV), which revealed ancient white coral structures of large dimensions along a vertical wall more than 80 m high, particularly rare in Mare Nostrum. This habitat hosts a remarkable biodiversity of great scientific interest and fossil organisms which constitute an important testimony to the geological history of the area. The objective of the expedition is to protect and regenerate the habitat of white corals.
What does the large coral reef in the Gulf of Naples hide?
The coral reef was identified as part of the “Demetra” expeditionwhich is part of the European LIFE DREAM project and is coordinated by the Cnr Institute of Marine Sciences (Cnr-Ismar) with the involvement of the Anton Dohrn Zoological Station, the Polytechnic University of Marche and the Federico II University of Naples. The place of discovery is the Canyon Dohrn in the Gulf of Napleswhich exceeds 1000 m below sea level and is one of the deepest points of the Mediterranean Sea. The underwater canyon, whose environment is still little knownhas steep walls and bifurcates into two branches. The exploration of such deep environments is very complex and requires the use of remote control robot (ROV, Remotely Operated Vehicle) equipped with mechanical arms and cameras, capable of descending into the depths and returning images of what they encounter.
In this case the robots have identified impressive structures over 2 m wide and distributed along a vertical wall more than 80 m highconsisting of white corals (so called due to the absence of colouration), i.e. deep-sea hard corals which include the species Desmophyllum pertusum And Madrepora oculata. This reef is also home to black corals, solitary corals, sponges and other rather rare species in the Mediterranean, such as the bivalve Acesta excavata and the deep-sea oyster Neopycnodon zibrowii. The site not only hosts living organisms, but also conserves fossil evidence of the biodiversity that characterized the canyon in the past, including traces of ancient corals and oysters. The coral reef is a discovery rare in our sea, in terms of species type and extension.
Giorgio Castellanhead of mission of the campaign and researcher at the Cnr-Ismar of Bologna, claims that:
The discovery represents a fundamental piece for understanding the ecological role of deep coral habitats and their distribution, especially with a view to protection and restoration actions.
The Demetra mission of the CNR which discovered the coral reef
There “Demetra” expedition on board the CNR ship Gaia Blu he explored the seabed of Gulf of Naples and the Canyon of Bari to study the deep and biodiversity-rich habitats where corals and oysters live. One of the main objectives is the habitat restorationthanks to robots equipped with arms capable of removing waste and tools stuck in the corals. Another objective is the control of the “ecoreefs”artificial structures printed in 3D and made with ecological materials, which were positioned in 2024 to help new corals settle in the most damaged areas. To ensure the monitoring punctual of the site and the effects of the restoration actions it was also planned to place special instruments equipped with cameras and sensors capable of measuring parameters such as temperature and salinity. In this way, more data on the deep environment will be acquired, which will also allow us to evaluate the consequences of climate change.
