Brittle star sea 'dinosaurs' at risk from commercial fishing, researchers say

Ancient species lives at depths of 200 to 800 metres, where key commercial fishing species are found

Species as old as the dinosaurs are swimming around in tropical waters at depths accessed by commercial fishermen, according to a world-first study conducted by Australian researchers.

The study, published in the journal Nature on Thursday, examined data on brittle sea stars pulled from 1,500 research voyages in the southern hemisphere from the equator to Antarctica.