In 1987, ancient glass sponge reefs were found alive off Canada’s Pacific coast after 40 million years

In 1987, Canadian scientists discovered ancient glass sponge reefs alive in British Columbia’s Hecate Strait, overturning the belief that these reef-building animals had vanished 40 million years ago. More than 9,000 years old, the reefs survive today in Hecate Strait, Queen Charlotte Sound and Howe Sound, creating a rare underwater ecosystem often called the “Sea of Glass.”