Scientists discover thriving hard-substrate fauna in Oceania's deep sea (opens in new tab)

In the crushing darkness of the hadal zone—deep ocean trenches plunging 6,000 m to nearly 11,000 m—scientists have uncovered a hidden community. A study published in Science on May 14 reports the discovery of a protist-dominated hard-substrate fauna across seven hadal regions in Oceania, highlighting an overlooked yet highly active carbon "hotspot."