The Ecosystem

“Even if you never eat  seafood--if you live in the middle of the Sahara and eat only dates from the palms of an oasis--you are dependent upon the ocean.

~ Dr. Thomas Shirley, Finding Coral science team member and participant in more than 40 research cruises and 12 submersible research projects.

The ocean is the heart and lungs of the planet -- every second breath you take comes from the phytoplankton in the ocean. It absorbs CO₂ and generates the weather that gives us rain, which in turn provides the water we drink.  All people should be concerned about the health of the ocean, and deep sea habitats that are critical to ocean health. 

Many species of deep sea corals throughout the world have been in existence since before the pyramids were built -- when the Greeks were just beginning to develop geometry. Oceanographic history is embedded in the skeletons of corals. The vast forests of Primnoa coral that we found at three sites on our expedition are similar in age to the forests along the B.C. coast.  Everywhere we found corals, we found complex communities that form essential habitat in the deep-sea ecosystem.