WoRMS Top-Ten Marine Species
An Annual Celebration of Marine Biodiversity
Each year, the World Register of Marine Species (WoRMS) releases itsTop-Ten Marine Species list on Taxonomist Appreciation Day (March 19th), celebrating the fascinating discoveries of new marine species. This list highlights the incredible diversity of life found beneath the waves and underscores the importance of taxonomists and their role in cataloguing and understanding marine biodiversity.
The list is compiled by WoRMS' global network of editors and users, who nominate and vote for their favourite marine species described in the previous year. Nominations are open to species described between January 1st and December 31st and must come from the marine environment, including fossils. Each year, the final list reflects the rich diversity of marine life, spanning animals from various groups such as fish, crustaceans, molluscs, corals, sponges, jellyfish, and worms.
The species chosen not only highlight the vast and often unexplored marine world but also bring attention to the challenges facing our oceans. Many of the nominated species reveal critical issues like the impacts of climate change, invasive species, and deep-sea ecosystems affected by human activity.
The WoRMS Top-Ten list is more than just a celebration of newly discovered species—it is a reminder of the ongoing work of taxonomists around the globe. Every year, nearly 2,000 new marine species are described, and the WoRMS database is constantly updated with the help of more than 300 scientists worldwide. These efforts are vital for improving our understanding of marine life and ensuring the conservation of our oceans.
We invite you to explore the Top-Ten lists from past years and celebrate the incredible diversity of life in the sea!
The WoRMS Top-Ten Marine Species would not have been possible without the collaboration between the WoRMS Data Management Team (DMT), the WoRMS Top-Ten Decision Committee, the WoRMS Steering Committee (SC) and voluntary contributions by many of the WoRMS editors.
The work of the DMT and many WoRMS-DMT-related activities are supported by LifeWatch Belgium, part of the E-Science European LifeWatch Infrastructure for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Research. LifeWatch is a distributed virtual laboratory, which is used for different aspects of biodiversity research. The Species Information Backbone of LifeWatch aims at bringing together taxonomic and species-related data and at filling the gaps in our knowledge. In addition, it gives support to taxonomic experts by providing them logistic and financial support for the organization of meetings and workshops related to expanding the content and enhancing the quality of taxonomic databases.
WoRMS – as ABC WoRMS – is an endorsed action under the UN Ocean Decade.
WoRMS and Ocean Census have a partnership to enhance rapid discovery and identification of marine life.
