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Found in Underwater Mountains off the Coast of Costa Rica, the Organism Confused Genetic Analyses, Did Not Fit into Known Families, and Revealed an Unknown Lineage of Octocorals
Hundreds of meters below the surface of the Pacific, where sunlight no longer sustains the ecosystems seen in shallow waters, researchers discovered an organism that did not fit adequately into any of the coral families known to science. The colonies were bright yellow, branching like small trees, with some potentially exceeding one meter in height.
The coral was found in underwater mountains near Costa Rica, at depths ranging from approximately 360 to 529 meters, during expeditions conducted in 2019 and 2023. After years of analyzing its structure and DNA, scientists concluded they were not just facing an unknown species: it was necessary to create a new species, a new genus, and an entire new taxonomic family to classify it.
ROV SuBastian Found Yellow Colonies at Depths of Up to 529 Meters
The specimens were observed and collected by the ROV SuBastian, a remotely operated vehicle used by the Schmidt Ocean Institute. The operations originated from the research vessels Falkor and Falkor (too), enabling scientists to explore areas of the seafloor that are inaccessible by conventional diving.
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The expeditions investigated underwater mountains near the Cocos Island and the Pacific coast of Costa Rica. The study recorded specimens at depths of approximately 360 to 529 meters, including colonies in formations known as Las Gemelas and another underwater mountain in the region.
When alive, the colonies exhibit bright yellow coloration and a shape resembling that of a tree or large fan, with numerous branches. According to the announcement of the discovery, some exceed one meter in height, making the coral particularly visible against the rocky seabed.
The organism was scientifically named Laurinque elenya.
Scientists Initially Tried to Fit the Coral into Already Known Groups
Researcher Odalisca Breedy from the University of Costa Rica is among the key individuals responsible for the description. The first specimens were obtained during an expedition in 2019, but the coral’s unusual appearance already indicated that its identification would not be straightforward.
New samples collected in 2023 allowed for further study. Researchers analyzed characteristics such as the shape of the colonies, the structure of the polyps, and small skeletal elements called sclerites, comparing the organism to other octocorals described previously.
The morphological differences were significant, but it was when the team began studying the genetic material that an even more intriguing problem emerged.
Three genetic markers placed the same coral in different positions
The team initially used traditional genetic markers employed in the classification of octocorals, including mtMutS, COI, and 28S rDNA. Instead of clarifying the organism’s origin, the results produced different positions on the evolutionary tree depending on the gene analyzed.
In other words, each marker seemed to suggest a different relationship, preventing the coral from being convincingly placed within an already established family.
Faced with this inconsistency, the researchers turned to a much broader phylogenomic approach, utilizing ultraconserved elements and exons to compare a greater amount of genetic information. The final analysis showed that the organism formed a distinct lineage, although related to the Eunicellidae family.
The genetic differences, combined with the coral’s anatomical peculiarities, were too significant to simply classify it as a new member of that family.
Discovery forced researchers to create the Laurinqueidae family
The outcome was a much less common situation than simply describing a new species. The researchers formally established Laurinqueidae as a new family, Laurinque as a new genus, and Laurinque elenya as a new species.
The study, titled A coral among stars: A new octocoral family from seamounts in the tropical eastern Pacific, was published on June 30, 2026, in the scientific journal ZooKeys, authored by Odalisca Breedy, Catherine S. McFadden, Catalina Murillo-Cruz, Ana-Belén Yánez-Suárez, Katleen Robert, and Andrea M. Quattrini.
This means that the animal did not just add another name to the list of known species. It came to represent a new recognized branch in the scientific classification of octocorals.
Name was inspired by Tolkien and the scene found at the bottom of the Pacific
The name chosen by the researchers also references the unusual appearance of the discovery. Laurinque derives from “Laurinquë”, a term associated with a golden tree in the Elvish Quenya language created by author J. R. R. Tolkien.
This choice aligns with the appearance of the colonies: large yellow, branching structures resembling trees growing over rocks on the ocean floor.
Meanwhile, elenya refers to the stars. Surrounding the corals were large numbers of brittle stars, marine animals related to starfish. Captured by the SuBastian cameras, they formed a kind of star field beneath the yellow colonies, helping to inspire both the species name and the title of the scientific work.
Deep Coral Gardens Reveal How Much Remains Unknown
The environment where Laurinque elenya lives is vastly different from the tropical reefs typically associated with the term coral. At hundreds of meters deep, these colonies grow in rocky areas of underwater mountains, forming structures capable of increasing habitat complexity and providing space for other organisms.
The discovery further reinforces a characteristic of deep-sea research: even groups studied for decades may still harbor entire evolutionary lineages unknown to science.
In this case, two expeditions, a robot capable of operating at hundreds of meters deep, microscopic analyses, and advanced genomic techniques were necessary to understand what initially appeared to be just another yellow coral in the Pacific.
Ultimately, Laurinque elenya revealed something much greater: an animal that remained outside scientific classification until its discovery forced researchers to create an entirely new family to place it within the tree of life.
