at Bering Sea, United States —

     the  research voyage to the Bering Sea has led to the discovery of a species of sponge new to science. Using state-of-the-art manned submarines to explore the world's deepest underwater canyons the new sponge was collected in samples of never before seen life from the Bering Sea floor.

 

 

 

               The announcement of the discovery comes on the same day that the UN meets in New York to discuss the protection of the high seas. "We know so little about the seas around us and far less about the open oceans. This amazing discovery underscores the need for the UN to establish a global network of marine reserves and to stop the current free-for-all whereby habitats and species are being destroyed before scientists have even had a chance to give them names," said Richard Page, an oceans campaigner for Greenpeace International, attending the meeting.