OCEAN: New Fish Species Discovered & more – 16th Sep 2025

Ahoy from BA! This is the Rorshok Ocean Update from the 16th of September twenty twenty-five. A summary of what's going down in the 70% surface of the Earth covered in saltwater.

To start this week’s show, say hello to a newly found bony fish species. Discover Magazine reported on Wednesday, the 10th that researchers discovered three new deep-sea snailfish off the US, including the bumpy, dark, and sleek snailfish, after expeditions using the remotely operated vehicle Doc Ricketts and submersible Alvin.

Teams from the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute and US universities combined high-depth video, computed tomography scans, and DNA analysis to confirm the species, way under 13,000 feet (or nearly four kilometers) below sea level.

These new finds expand biodiversity records, reminding us that there is more life out there just waiting to be discovered.

While new species are just being discovered, other existing species are fighting to survive. Science Alert reported on Saturday, the 13th, that new research warns ocean acidification could weaken sharks’ teeth, dulling their bite, and undermining their prowess as aquatic apex predators.

Scientists incubated blacktip reef shark teeth in seawater mimicking future acidity and saw cracking, pitting, and loss of serrations across the crown and root. If teeth and skin-like denticles erode, sharks may struggle to feed, ripple through food webs, and weaken fisheries.

If this keeps going, the predator-prey dynamics underwater will change in the near future, disrupting the balance in aquatic ecosystem stability.

Deep-sea marine life may be surprised at what’s waiting for them on the floor. Earth.com reported on Saturday, the 13th, that scientists found a hidden plastic graveyard on the deep seafloor of the eastern Mediterranean’s Levant Basin, off Israel, Egypt, and Turkey.

In the study, the researchers took a more forensic approach to the plastic items, inspecting, analyzing, and characterizing each specimen by physiochemical properties, surface features, and materials adhering to them, like tar or marine organisms.

Trawl surveys showed bags and packaging dominate the debris. Lightweight films sank after manufacturers added calcium carbonate or after tar, sand, and shells clung on. The basin acts like a trap, keeping waste thousands of feet down for centuries.

If this goes on, it will lead to seafood risks, damaged habitats, and costly clean-ups. It might be a good time for tougher packaging material rules, regional monitoring, and less single-use plastic in daily life.

On another note, it seems that national-level governments are making a huge step towards marine environmental care and recovery, as the UK government reported via a press release on Wednesday, the 10th, that it has introduced a bill to implement the High Seas Treaty, protecting two-thirds of the ocean.

It enables protected zones beyond national borders, curbs destructive activity, and shares benefits from marine genetic resources.

Meanwhile, according to a report by the Associated Press released on Wednesday the 10th, China approved a national nature reserve at Scarborough Shoal in the South China Sea, a reef also claimed by the Philippines. Beijing’s State Council said details will follow, framing the reserve as ecosystem protection.

The shoal has seen repeated standoffs, including a recent collision between Chinese vessels while blocking a Philippine patrol, and allied drills by the Philippines, Australia, and Canada.

The government sector isn’t the only one offering a lending hand, as FBC news reported on Saturday, the 13th, that the Asian Development Bank approved a 125 million US dollar loan and a 10 million US dollar grant to boost Fiji’s water security and ocean health.

The project will double capacity at Suva’s Kinoya wastewater plant, cut pollution in Laucala Bay, and fund leak reduction across the capital’s ageing network—saving about ten million cubic meters of water and lowering emissions.

A regional training hub in Lautoka will build skills.

Marine biodiversity, water security, and ocean health are not the only concerns we should address. Yahoo News reported on Saturday, the 13th, that scientists are advancing a seaweed-based method to recover rare earth minerals for tech and clean energy.

Researchers at the US Pacific Northwest National Laboratory grew seaweed in Sequim Bay, in the US, then used waste acids to release minerals like neodymium from the biomass.

Early runs of the extraction process aim for fifty percent recovery while cutting energy use and cost.

While alternative mining is being explored, the ground may still be expressing its heartbreak over past damages. Earth.com reported on Wednesday, the 10th, that scientists mapped a pulsing geological heartbeat beneath the Afar Depression in East Africa, where three rifts meet.

These mantle upwellings push hot rock upward, thinning crust and accelerating continental breakup that will eventually open a new ocean.

The plume pulses like a heartbeat, focusing volcanism and earthquakes along Ethiopia, Eritrea, and Djibouti.

Now is the time for better hazard forecasting, stronger infrastructure planning, and guidance for migration and regional development.

Land isn’t the only thing that’s moving, as CBS News reported on Wednesday, the 10th, that El Salvador intercepted about one point four tonnes of cocaine floating roughly one thousand miles (about 1,600 kilometers) off El Cordoncillo on the Pacific coast, valued at thirty-five million US dollars.

President Nayib Bukele framed it as a blow to international trafficking. Authorities say cartels move most cocaine through Central America by small craft and narco-subs.

The US is deploying assets in the Caribbean amid vows to strike designated narco-terrorists.

An Illegal package of illicit drugs doesn’t seem to be the only one experiencing logistics problems, as the Weather Network reported on Sunday, the 14th, that a normally reliable upwelling off Panama failed this year for the first time in over forty years of records.

The winter shift of the Intertropical Convergence Zone usually drives strong northerly winds, cooling sea-surface temperatures to about nineteen degrees Celsius (or sixty-six degrees Fahrenheit) and hauling nutrients to the surface for fisheries.

In twenty twenty-five, weak winds delayed and shortened the upwelling event; temperatures barely fell to twenty-three degrees (or seventy-three degrees Fahrenheit) for two weeks.

To further investigate these weather disturbances, tech-forward equipment is a must. NASA reported on Thursday, the 11th, that Sentinel-6B, a US–European sea-level satellite launching in November, will sharpen marine weather forecasts that keep ships, crews, and cargo safe.

The mission will extend a thirty-year record of sea levels while providing near-real-time readings of wave height, wind speed, and the shifting paths of major currents like the Gulf Stream.

Forecasters will use the data to flag dangerous seas and help vessels adjust course, reducing accidents and delays. Recall that forecasts protect supply chains, stabilize prices, and support coastal planning as oceans warm and storms intensify.

From searching meteorological data to seeking lost personnel, MSN reported on Monday, the 15th, that search teams in Durban, South Africa, temporarily suspended efforts to find a missing pilot after an Extra 300 aerobatic plane crashed into the sea near North Beach by Suncoast Casino during an aviation summit display.

The Metro Police Search and Rescue, the South African Police Services, the Natural Sciences Research Institute, and paramedics recovered wreckage. The full search resumes on Friday, the 19th.

Authorities closed Battery Beach and urged the public to avoid the area.

Finishing strong with a shipping industry milestone, the SeaTrade Maritime reported on Tuesday, the 16th, that Shanghai set a new monthly record in August, moving five million TEU (which means Twenty-Foot Equivalent Unit, a standard measurement for cargo capacity).

Peak export season, stronger China–US flows, and the new Gemini Cooperation between Maersk and Hapag-Lloyd lifted transhipments. From January to August, throughput reached about 37 million TEU, up five percent year-on-year. Yangshan handled roughly two and a half million TEU, just over half of Shanghai’s total.

Expect steadier shelves ahead of year-end shopping, quicker delivery windows, and pressure on freight rates and trucking slots.

Aaand that’s it for this week! Thank you for joining us!

Don’t forget that we do many other updates. We’ve got country and non-country updates, including the Arctic and Multilateral shows.

Check the full list with the link in the show notes.

See you next week!