Canada Expands Protections for Rare Reefs Made of Glass

Canada has extended protections for a rare ocean reef made of sea sponges once thought to have disappeared with the dinosaurs.

Glass sponge reefs—named that way because they’re comprised of silica—are for the most part only found on Canada’s Pacific coast, Sabine Jessen, a conservationist who works to protect the reefs, told Bloomberg Environment.

Fisheries and Oceans Minister Jonathan Wilkinson announced March 6 that a new 3.5 square kilometer area will be closed to fishing to protect the reefs, which shatter easily if touched by a trap or other fishing gear being lowered to ...