A bamboo coral (right), attached by its holdfast to hard substrate peeking out of sediments, was observed at 2,229 meters (~7,315 feet) depth at the southern end of the West Florida Escarpment. The glass sponge on the left is similarly attached to the exposed rock, but the surrounding soft sediments lack large suspension feeders, which need the firm surface to attach and grow to a large size.
Bamboo Coral
Image courtesy of the NOAA Office of Ocean Exploration and Research, Gulf of Mexico 2018.
A bamboo coral (right), attached by its holdfast to hard substrate peeking out of sediments, was observed at 2,229 meters (~7,315 feet) depth at the southern end of the West Florida Escarpment. The glass sponge on the left is similarly attached to the exposed rock, but the surrounding soft sediments lack large suspension feeders, which need the firm surface to attach and grow to a large size. Download larger version (jpg, 1.3 MB).
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