IUCN, the International Union for Conservation of Nature

The six-week research expedition above six seamounts in the high seas of the Indian Ocean has brought a new understanding of seamount ecosystems as well as a rich collection of data and speciments, including some strange-looking marine creatures.

Coral Seamount on the southwest Indian Ridge. Feature set aside as a Benthic Protected Area by the Southern Indian Ocean Deepsea Fishers Association (SIODFA) . (1.13 Mb)

Photo: © SIODFA

White-tailed tropicbird Phaethon lepturus (Paille en queue à brins blancs). (2.6Mb)

© ECOMAR, Matthieu Le Corre

Deep-sea trawler in the Indian Ocean at sunset. (2.71 Mb)

Photo: © J. Sanders/FAO and SIODFA 

Humpback whale Megaptera novaeangliae (baleine à bosse). (3.1 Mb)

Photo: © Jeremy Kiszka

Sooty tern Sterna fuscata (Sterne fuligineuse). (4 Mb)

© ECOMAR, Frédéric Henzé

Bag of 5 tons of orange roughy caught in the Indian Ocean. (2.72 Mb)

Photo: © P. Gaugler/SIODFA

Deep-sea coral of the Indian Ocean. (755 Kb)

Photo: © J. Sanders/FAO and SIODFA 

Orange roughy caught in the Indian Ocean. (794 Kb)

Photo: © J. Sanders/FAO and SIODFA 

Deep-sea trawler in the Indian Ocean. (670 Kb)

Photo: © J. Sanders/FAO and SIODFA 

Pintado petrel Daption capense. (2.12Mb)

Photo: © Ross Wanless

Shy albatross Thalassarche cauta. (459 Kb)

Photo: © Ross Wanless

Wandering albatross Diomedea exulans. (1Mb)

Photo: © Ross Wanless

White-chineed petrel Procellaria aequinoctialis. (1Mb)

Photo: © Ross Wanless