Precious coral grazed seastar (IMAGE)
Caption
On the expedition's first ROV dive, this striking and clear example of corallivory was photographed: a predator eating coral mucus, tissue, even the skeleton of a coral. Here a corallivorous deep-sea sea star Evoplosoma eats live precious coral (Corallium) at a depth of 2004m on a previously unexplored ABNJ seamount (Area Beyond National Jurisdiction). While many seamounts and shoals are located in national waters, many others fall in ABNJ locations, with no current legal status per se. Many deep-sea researchers believe it is essential that protection measures are instigated under an internationally-recognized legal and institution framework to preserve the biodiversity and habitats there.
Credit
Schmidt Ocean Institute
Usage Restrictions
Use with credit to Schmidt Ocean Institute.
License
Licensed content