Stuff nightmares are made of

Wednesday 2 July 2014

Stuff nightmares are made of

The research vessel Nautilus is currently surveying the deep water coral beds in the Gulf of Mexico near to the site of the Deepwater Horizon oilfield. In the course of their research into how the coral reefs are coping port the oil spill the team have been recording some of the more varied examples of marine life found in the area - you wouldn't want to wake up finding this little chap making his way towards you!

"This beautiful colonial organism drifted past Hercules' cameras, and we followed it for as long as we could keep track. They are made up of many smaller animals called zooids, and can be found floating around the pelagic zone in ocean basins around the world. One famous siphonophore species is the deadly Portugese man o' war."