Scientists working across some of the world’s most remote and least-explored waters have pulled back the curtain on 1,121 marine species previously unknown to science, marking the most significant discovery milestone to date in the Nippon Foundation-Nekton Ocean Census mission to document life beneath the waves.

Over the last year, 13 expeditions fanned out across the globe, each conducted in partnership with JAMSTEC, CSIRO and the Schmidt Ocean Institute, have documented an ‘extraordinary’ range of depth, geography, and biology: from the distant cousin of the shark found in the abyss of the coral sea to a tiny polychaete worm making its home in the crystalline chambers of a deep-water sponge off Japan.

Despite the achievement, up to 90% of marine species have yet to be documented by science. However, with interested parties turning their attention closer to the depths of the deep sea, what the Census represents is an urgent attempt to build the evidence base that deep-sea conservation policy needs.

“With many species at risk of disappearing before they are even documented, we are in a race against time to understand and protect ocean life,” said Dr Michelle Taylor, head of science at Ocean Census. 

“For too long, thousands of species have remained in a scientific ‘limbo’ because the pace of discovery couldn’t keep up. We are now breaking that bottleneck. By accelerating discovery and sharing data globally, we are not just finding new life, but generating the evidence needed to drive global science and policy at a critical moment.” 

Among the 1,121 finds, four species illuminate just how much the ocean still conceals – and how varied the habitats in which new life continues to be found.

The ‘Ghost Shark’ Chimaera (Chimaera sp. 1)

Location: Coral Sea Marine Park, Australia
Depth: 802–838 metres

Often called “ghost sharks,” chimaeras are among the most mysterious inhabitants of the deep ocean. Distant relatives of sharks and rays, they diverged into a distinct evolutionary lineage nearly 400 million years ago – predating the dinosaurs. The species was discovered by taxonomist Dr William White during a CSIRO expedition to the Coral Sea Marine Park, off the Queensland coast. Today, a third of sharks, rays and chimaeras are vulnerable to extinction.

‘Life in a Glass Castle’ Symbiotic Worm (Dalhousiella yabukii):

Location: Shichiyo Seamount Chain, Japan
Depth: 791 metres

Discovered on a volcanic seamount during the 2025 Ocean Census JAMSTEC-Shinkai Japan expedition, this polychaete worm makes its home inside a ‘glass castle’: the intricate chambers of a glass sponge, a creature with a skeleton made of crystalline silica. Named after the mission’s principal investigator, Dr Akinori Yabuki, this discovery was made by Dr Nato Jimi and published in The Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society.

Ribbon Worm (Drepanophoridae sp.1):

Location: Timor-Leste
Depth: 1-5 metres

The striking pigmentation of this ribbon worm may serve as a visual warning to predators; a signal of the potent chemical defences common to the phylum Nemertea. Beyond their ecological role as predators, these worms may have biomedical significance; some of their unique toxins have been investigated as potential treatments for Alzheimer’s and schizophrenia. Discovered by Dr Svetlana Maslakova, the worms are less than 3cm long and their vivid pigmentation serves as a warning to predators, signalling potent chemical defences.

Mediterranean Shrimp (Caridion sp. 1)

Location: Marseille, France
Depth: 15-35 metres

A striking new species of shrimp found in a sea cave off Marseille proves that major marine discoveries are still being made right on Europe’s Mediterranean coast. Defined by its vivid orange banding and intricate appendages, the specimen was identified by taxonomist Dr Hossein Ashrafi, building critical data for effective conservation in the pressured Mediterranean region.

“This year, Ocean Census has shown what is possible when scientific ambition is matched by global collaboration at scale,” said Mitsuyuku Unno, executive director of The Nippon Foundation. “Through expeditions reaching polar depths to tropical seas, and the science to turn samples into discoveries, this team is revealing  the extraordinary richness of ocean life.”

Historically, the average time between a species’ initial collection and its formal description in scientific literature has been 13.5 years – a delay so severe that species routinely face extinction before they are even catalogued.

Ocean Census is tackling this directly with the launch of NOVA, a new open-access digital platform that makes collected data available within days or weeks, with ‘discovered’ recognised as a formal scientific status from the moment a specimen is recorded.

These findings feed directly into the scientific foundations required for the High Seas Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction Treaty and the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework – international mechanisms that depend on precisely the kind of high-quality baseline data Ocean Census is designed to produce.

Three years in, Ocean Census has built the systems, networks and infrastructure to discover marine life at speed and at scale. Now, co-founder Nekton is seeking $100 million in catalytic capital to unlock more than $75 million already pledged by partners – with the ambition of documenting 100,000 new species in the years ahead.

“We spend billions searching for life on Mars or going to the dark side of the moon. Discovering the majority of life on our own planet – in our own ocean – costs a fraction of that. The question is not whether we can afford to do this. It is whether we can afford not to,” Oliver Steeds, director of Ocean Census.

With up to 90% of ocean life still unnamed and unknown, the Census’s pace is measured not against what science has achieved, but against how fast the ocean is changing. For every ghost shark found, countless others may vanish before anyone ever thinks to look.

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