https://www.vice.com/en_us/article/qjbwxv/scientists-discover-centuries-old-arctic-creatures-surviving-on-fossils

A thriving community of centuries-old sponges is devouring the fossils of an extinct ecosystem atop the peaks of an underwater mountain range near the North Pole, reports a new study.

The discovery of this stunning biological hotspot is a testament to the resilience of life in even the most inhospitable environments, like the dark and nutrient-poor slopes hidden under the Arctic sea ice. Given that human-driven climate change is warming this Northern region at least twice as fast as the rest of the planet, better knowledge of these surprisingly vibrant ecosystems “is essential for protecting and managing the unique diversity of these Arctic seas,” according to the study, which was published on Tuesday in Nature Communications.