A beautiful brisingid sea star sits at the very top of a bamboo coral, taking advantage of the perch off the seafloor for better feeding opportunities. Note that much of the bamboo coral is stripped of its polyps. Early in the dive, this was typical, with nearly all bamboo corals being at least 50% denuded, though no obvious coral predator was found during the dive.
Sea Star Perch
Image courtesy of NOAA Ocean Exploration, 2021 North Atlantic Stepping Stones: New England and Corner Rise Seamounts. Download largest version (jpg, 775 KB).

A beautiful brisingid sea star sits at the very top of a bamboo coral, taking advantage of the perch off the seafloor for better feeding opportunities. Note that much of the bamboo coral is stripped of its polyps. Early in the dive, this was typical, with nearly all bamboo corals being at least 50% denuded, though no obvious coral predator was found during the dive.

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