Glass Sponge Reef and Rockfish Conservation in Átl’ḵa7tsem Howe Sound

June 3, noon to 1pm

Presentation by Adam Taylor

Marine Life Sanctuaries Society

Glass sponges are incredibly unique organisms consisting of skeletons formed by silicon dioxide and capable of forming extensive reef systems. Fossil records indicate that this ancient organism is over 800 million years old  with the largest discovered reef once stretching over 7000 km long, more than double the size of the Great Barrier Reef! These incredible structures were thought to have been extinct until 1987, when an oceanographic survey in the Queen Charlottes discovered a 9,000-year-old sponge reef in Hectate Strait covering an area of 700 square km and reaching 8 stories high!

Since their modern-day discovery, MLSS has been actively working to map the distribution of sponge reefs in Átl’ka7tsem/Howe Sound using drop-camera video. To date we have identified 10 out of the known 17 sponge reefs, as well as numerous sponge gardens (sponge growing on bedrock).