Benham Bank is an

ocean bank An ocean bank, sometimes referred to as a fishing bank or simply bank, is a part of the seabed that is shallow compared to its surrounding area, such as a shoal or the top of an seamount, underwater hill. Somewhat like continental margin, conti ...

in the

Philippine Sea The Philippine Sea is a marginal sea of the Western Pacific Ocean east of the Philippine archipelago (hence the name), the largest in the world, occupying an estimated surface area of . The Philippine Sea Plate forms the floor of the sea. Its ...

. It is the shallowest point of

Benham Rise The Benham Rise, officially known as Philippine Rise, is an extinct volcanic ridge located in the Philippine Sea approximately east of the northern coastline of Dinapigue, Isabela. The rise has been known to the people of Catanduanes as Kalip ...

, which is wholly part of the territory of the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

Geology

With an area of around , the Benham Bank only forms 1 percent of the

. It is the shallowest point of the larger

underwater plateau An oceanic or submarine plateau is a large, relatively flat elevation that is higher than the surrounding relief with one or more relatively steep sides. There are 184 oceanic plateaus in the world, covering an area of or about 5.11% of the ...

at below sea level.

Flora and fauna

Benham Bank hosts at least 200 species of fish, including commercially important fish such as the blue fin tuna. At the mesophotic zone or around of the ocean bank, sponges and algae such as ''

Halimeda ''Halimeda'' is a genus of green macroalgae. The algal body (thallus) is composed of calcified green segments. Calcium carbonate is deposited in its tissues, making it inedible to most herbivores. However one species, '' Halimeda tuna'', was desc ...

'' green

macroalgae Seaweed, or macroalgae, refers to thousands of species of macroscopic, multicellular, marine algae. The term includes some types of ''Rhodophyta'' (red), ''Phaeophyta'' (brown) and ''Chlorophyta'' (green) macroalgae. Seaweed species such as k ...

have been observed. Expeditions in 2014 and 2016 revealed a mesophotic coral reef with 100% live coral cover.

Research

Marine scientists from the

Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources The Philippines' Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources ( fil, Kawanihan ng Pangisdaan at Yamang-tubig, abbreviated as BFAR), is an agency of the Politics of the Philippines, Philippine government under the Department of Agriculture (Philippin ...

(BFAR) and the

University of the Philippines The University of the Philippines (UP; fil, Pamantasan ng Pilipinas Unibersidad ng Pilipinas) is a state university system in the Philippines. It is the country's national university, as mandated by Republic Act No. 9500 (UP Charter of 200 ...

(UP) conducted research in the Benham Bank in 2016. They boarded the government ship MV ''DA-BFAR'' for their research. Their remotely operated vehicle as well as technical diver-videographers were provided by Oceana Philippines. BFAR and UP also conducted research in 2014.

Conservation

Local environmental groups have urged the

Department of Environment and Natural Resources The Department of Environment and Natural Resources ( fil, Kagawaran ng Kapaligiran at Likas na Yaman, DENR or KKLY) is the executive department of the Philippine government responsible for governing and supervising the exploration, developmen ...

to declare the Benham Bank as a "no-take" zone to legally protect the feature's biodiversity by limiting "human activity".

References

{{Geography of the Philippines Landforms of the Philippines Philippine Sea Undersea banks of the Pacific Ocean