HONOLULU (AP) — A newly identified species of deep-sea coral that lives only in Hawaiian waters is the longest-living marine organism. ADVERTISING HONOLULU (AP) — A newly identified species of deep-sea coral that lives only in Hawaiian waters is the
HONOLULU (AP) — A newly identified species of deep-sea coral that lives only in Hawaiian waters is the longest-living marine organism.
Researchers say the fan-shaped black coral can live more than 4,000 years.
The species is formally called Leiopathes annosa, which comes from the Latin meaning “long-lived.”
“We can take pride out here that we have these in our own backyard, these kupuna, these very old organisms,” said Daniel Wagner, a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration research specialist for the Papahanaumokuakea National Marine Sanctuary.
Wagner, who identified the coral with Smithsonian Institution-based researcher Dennis Opresko, says the Hawaiian coral specimens are different from those found in other places.
In the past, say the researchers, scientists have previously incorrectly grouped the coral with another species or been unsure how to identify it.
“No one had looked at them until now,” said Wagner.
Black coral is named for its skeleton and actually comes in bright colors, he added. This coral species is abundant in deep waters off Hawaii and typically grows to 3 feet tall, said Wagner, though he’s seen them reach 6 feet on occasion.
“It’s a beautiful, incredible coral. They’re really something to see underwater,” said Terry Kerby, operations director and chief pilot for the Hawaiian Undersea Research Laboratory. His submersibles provided recent samples of the coral for Wagner and Opresko’s research.
“They’re just really ancient corals.”
The researchers used coral samples that had been collected over a century to determine the true identity of Leiopathes annosa.
The samples were collected at depths greater than 1,000 feet. Some of them came from an old research steamer that trawled the Hawaiian waters in the early 1900s; others were collected during manned submersible dives over the past several decades.
Wagner says differences in the size and spacing of the Leiopathes annosa coral samples microscopic skeletal spines helped determine its classification as a separate species.
