LONG-TERM TRENDS IN THE DISCOVERY OF MARINE SPECIES NEW TO SCIENCE WHICH OCCUR IN BRITAIN AND IRELAND

Marine species new to science continue to be discovered around Britain and Ireland. The number of marine species described each year was plo tted against time for Pisces, Echinodermata, Anthozoa, Bivalvia, Decap oda, Gastropoda, Bryozoa, Tunicata, Medusozoa, Amphipoda, Porifera, Nu dibranchia, Polychaeta, Copepoda, Oligochaeta, and Nematoda. Trends su ggest that the latter four taxa in particular, in which individuals ge nerally have a small body size, still have many species remaining to b e described. More conspicuous taxa are better known, but new species c ontinue to be described. Whilst the World Wars and advent of new scien tific techniques do not appear to have had significant impacts on the general trends in discovery of new species, individual scientists have made major contributions.