Galiano Ridge Glass Sponge Reef

Glass sponge reefs are a marvel of underwater architecture--made of living animals. The internal structure of a glass sponge is an intricate network of silica-based spicules, allowing these sponges to build up into the water column, where they filter feed bacteria out of deep sea currents. Our team explored regions of a 9,000 year-old glass sponge reef off the coast of Galiano Island, British Columbia, during exploration with our partners at Ocean Networks Canada. 

E/V Nautilus launched the third season in the Pacific Ocean exploring Canadian waters with Ocean Networks Canada (ONC). ONC operates world-leading cabled ocean observatories that supply continuous power and Internet connectivity to a broad suite of subsea instruments. The ONC NEPTUNE observatory installation, off Vancouver Island’s west coast, spans one of the widest ranges of ocean environments found anywhere in the world.