The deep sea holds more than 90% of our oceans' water, but only around one-third of all fish species. Scientists have long assumed that the reason was obvious: shallow ocean waters are warm and rich in resources, making them an ideal environment for new species to grow and flourish. However, accordi
A lanternfish in the family Myctophidae, mesopelagic fishes that undergo daily vertical migrations. Credit: Steven Haddock/Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute
The deep sea is typically defined as anything below 650 feet, the depth at which there is no longer enough sunlight to support. As a result, there is far less food and warmth than in the shallows, making it a challenging area to live in. However, Miller was able to discover an unexpected evolutionary trend by examining the relationships of fish using theirrecords dating back 200 million years: the speciation rates, or the pace at which new species evolved, flip-flopped over time.
When Miller mapped these flip-flopping speciation rates onto a timeline of Earth’s history, she was able to identify three major events that likely played a role. The third event was yet another major climatic change about 15 million years ago, known as the middle Miocene climatic transition. This was caused by the further shifting of the continents, which caused major changes in ocean circulation and cooled the planet — all the way down to the deep sea.
“To evolve into a new species in the deep sea, first you have to get there,” said Miller. “What we found was that not only were the speciation rates flip-flopping through time but what the deep-sea fishes looked like was as well.”
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