Cover The Under The Pole team documenting the marine animal forest discovered in the waters of the Svalbard archipelago
The Under The Pole team documenting the marine animal forest discovered in the waters of the Svalbard archipelago
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With support from Rolex, a dedicated team of deep sea divers and scientists make first discovery of a marine animal forest in the icy waters of the Arctic
In the underwater world known as the Mesophotic Zone, 30m to 200m below sea level, there is an ecosystem of arctic submarine life that have remained undiscovered—until now. With the support of the Rolex Perpetual Planet Initiative, Under The Pole IV—Deeplife 2021-2030 expedition is on a mission to find and survey marine animal forests with the goal of improving knowledge and awareness of these ecosystems and assist in their preservation.
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Composing a team of both seasoned divers and marine scientists led by husband-and-wife and co-directors of Under The Pole, Emmanuelle Périé-Bardout and Ghislain Bardout, they sailed to the frigid waters of the Svalbard archipelago, off the north coast of Norway, in April 2022. This area is under threat as it is warming faster than anywhere else, and the floating sea ice that covers much of the Arctic Ocean is now half its usual size.
Above Emmanuelle Périé-Bardout, co-founder and co- director of Under The Pole
Above The Pole co- director Ghislain Bardout wearing his Rolex watch and a rebreather as he prepares to dive into the Arctic waters of Svalbard Archipelago
Emmanuelle Périé-Bardout, co-founder and co- director of Under The Pole
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Since 2010, the Bardouts and their team have pushed the boundaries of ocean exploration through a series of expeditions that led to several amazing discoveries, such as finding coral species never seen before in the French Polynesia, collecting data on the bioluminescent properties of 100 species found in the Arctic’s Northwest Passage, and amassing the world’s largest collection of mesophotic corals to date. So far, five papers have been published in peer-reviewed scientific journals. Although research is going to take several years, their work is shedding light on the resilience of the deep-water corals and how they are connected to shallower ocean areas, a study of great consideration as waters warm and become more acidic.
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For Under The Pole—Deeplife, which is also endorsed by the United Nations Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development (2021-2030), the team set out to discover the biodiversity and species connectivity of Marine Animal Forests (MAFs)—vulnerable marine habitats that are largely composed organisms such as sponges, gorgonians, hard corals, bryozoans and bivalves that form canopies similar to trees on land. Their objective is to identify their vulnerability to global warming, and ultimately, propose management and conservation measures for this largely unexplored marine zone, an important study that could help replenish over-exploited forests on land and species in shallower waters.
Above The Under The Pole team sailing the Svalbard Archipelago, where temperatures drop beyond -30°C
The Under The Pole team sailing the Svalbard Archipelago, where temperatures drop beyond -30°C
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Over a period of two months and 107 dives, in temperatures that regularly dropped to minus 30 degrees Celsius, divers heavily depended on specialist rebreather equipment, which recycles the unused oxygen exhaled to extend the divers’ air supply. Their dedication paid off with the discovery of the first marine animal forest in the Arctic, which is made up hyphoids: animals related to jellyfish and corals that resemble bells, flowers and ferns.
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“These are really rough, difficult dives and you need to have the passion for scientific discoveries to be able to go there. There is no room for error,” says Périé-Bardout.
“It’s very exciting to think that we have found the first underwater arctic animal forest. We’ll be able to come back and see how it evolves, which is extremely valuable for science... if we succeed in revealing these forests to the world, and they are protected, that would be my greatest achievement,” she explains of the discovery that represents an important advance in Arctic marine science.
A specialist in deep polar diving, Bardout asserts, “Humans will always explore, they will never stop. But, nowadays, exploration has to serve the greater good and the conservation of the planet. And in that sense, we are fully aligned with Rolex’s Perpetual Planet commitment. I’m very proud to be part of it and to contribute.”
In October 2022, the team began their second leg of the expedition to the Canary Islands. We can only hope that further discoveries will be made to assist in the advancement of scientific knowledge and help devise solutions to today’s environmental challenges.
Elizabeth Soong is the managing editor of Malaysia Tatler. She loves a good laugh, but is serious when it comes to work, and gets a high from dancing, cats purring, plus enjoys musicals or binge-watching a good TV series. Continually inspired by the people she meets, edits and writes about, you're welcome to see what she's up to on her Instagram @lizsoong.
