Seven new species show 250-million-year-old marine group is still evolving
Researchers have discovered 11 new species of hornerid bryozoans in the waters of Aotearoa New Zealand. This finding challenges previous beliefs about the diversity of these 250-million-year-old marine invertebrates.
Why it matters
Understanding biodiversity is essential for effective marine conservation and ecosystem management.
edited by Swati Mestri , reviewed by Robert Egan
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Add as preferred source New research led by Emeritus Professor Abby Smith discovered new species of hornerid bryozoans in Aotearoa New Zealand. Pictured is the Hornera polaris. Scientists believed there were only two species of hornerid bryozoans in Aotearoa New Zealand, but new research shows several more have been secretly evolving and thriving in the nation's southern waters.
Published in the Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society , the study was coauthored by Abby Smith and scientists Dr. Helen Jenkins, Dr. Paul Taylor and Dr. Andrea Waeschenbach of the Natural History Museum in London.
Bryozoans are small, usually hidden marine invertebrates that have existed for more than 250 million years.
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