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Just a typical day in the life of a deep-sea skate.⁠🏃🏼⁠ ⁠ Researchers compiled data from 18 years of rare video observations on deep-water skates in a recently published study. The team discovered that different skates have different ways of moving across the sediment and swimming through the water column. Some of the skates, like this Beringraja rhina, were observed using their “walking legs” (the pelvic fins) to stay close to the bottom while moving to hunt or to propel themselves up off the seafloor and settle back down onto the sediment. ⁠ ⁠ ⁠Read the full article on MBARI's website (link in bio).⁠ ⁠ #MBARI #weekendread⁠ ⁠#skates⁠ #deepsea #ocean #underwatervideo #nature #explore #science #exploremore #wildlife⁠ ⁠#marinebiology⁠⁠ ⁠ ⁠ ⁠

No one knows how vampire squid mate, but they apparently produce just one egg at a time, which they release to drift at the mercy of the ocean currents.⁠ ⁠ Female squid, octopuses, and cuttlefish end life with a bang. Usually, these soft-bodied cephalopods die after a single, end-of-life reproductive blaze of glory. But this deep-red, foot-long cephalopod breaks the deadly pattern. Vampire squid reproduce over 20 times throughout their lives.⁠ ⁠ Learn more about the amazing sex lives of cephalopods in our recent article "16 things you probably didn't know about cephalopod sex." The link is, you guessed it, in our bio. 😉⁠ ⁠ #MBARI #vampiresquid #cephalomania #deepsea #ocean #underwaterphotography #nature #explore #science #wildlife #fridayflow⁠ ⁠ ⁠ ⁠ ⁠

The deep, cold waters off the rocky coast of Point Sur, California, are home to an unexpected community of organisms that most people associate with tropical settings—corals. ⛱️⁠ ⁠ In 2013 MBARI researchers discovered an amazing array of coral gardens on Sur Ridge and have been working closely with the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary (MBNMS) to explore and study these ecosystems. Together MBARI and MBNMS have combined their efforts to investigate the best methodology for coral restoration in the deep sea.⁠ ⁠ This is the first time researchers have attempted to develop and test restoration methods for multiple deep-sea coral species in the Pacific Ocean. Because previous studies have focused primarily on propagating single species, this research helps fill in the knowledge gap for multiple coral species restoration methods in the deep sea. It is also the longest deep-sea coral study ever completed.⁠ ⁠ Read the full article on MBARI's website. (link in bio, we promise)⁠ ⁠ #MBARI #corals #deepsea #ocean #surridge #california #underwaterphotography #nature #explore #science #exploremore #wildlife⁠ ⁠ ⁠ ⁠ ⁠ ⁠ ⁠

Can we make Worm Crush Wednesday's a thing? #wormcrusheveryday⁠ ⁠ This tomopterid is one of the most crush-worthy of all the deep-sea worms. These segmented worms have paddle-like parapodia that propel them through the water in the open ocean. Though they never touch the seafloor where most marine worms live, they are relatively common in the deep midwater, found down to about 2,500 meters (8,200 feet). Many tomopterids are only a centimeter or two long, but some can also get to be quite large—up to 30 centimeters (12 inches!). They are voracious predators, using their speed and agility to capture and consume a variety of midwater organisms. ⁠ ⁠ #MBARI #worms #wormwednesday⁠ #deepsea #ocean #underwaterphotography #nature #explore #science #exploremore #wildlife⁠ ⁠#wcw⁠ ⁠ ⠀

What's better than all the masked singers? A singing whale! 🐋🎵⁠ ⁠ A new study led by MBARI biological oceanographer John Ryan shows how the amount of humpback song in Monterey Bay varies over days, months, and even years. In 2015, MBARI installed an underwater microphone (hydrophone) on the seafloor just outside Monterey Bay at a depth of 900 meters (3,000 feet). Since then, sounds picked up by the hydrophone have been recorded almost continuously. Scientists have already extracted a wealth of information from these recordings, including thousands of hours of humpback songs. Male humpbacks produce complex “songs” that can last for over 15 minutes and may be repeated for hours. Photo by Knute Brekke⁠ ⁠ Read the full article on MBARI's website (link in bio). ⁠ ⁠ #MBARI #humpbackwhale #whales #deepsea #ocean #nature #explore #science #wildlife #maskedsinger #whalesongs⁠ ⁠ ⁠

Struggling to get out of bed this Monday? We've got you covered with this week's #molluskmonday #momentofzen⁠ ⁠ The cranchiid squids, like this Galiteuthis sp., often have photophores around their eyes. Cephalopod photophores, or light organs, can be a simple group of photogenic cells, or they can be quite complex with photogenic cells surrounded by reflectors, lenses, light guides, color filters and muscles. The complex photophores are often able to actively adjust the color, intensity and angular distribution of the light they produce. Scientists believe that these photophores around the eyes provide counter-illumination, where the organ produces light to match an illuminated background. In the deep sea, where light is scarce, the squids might be matching the down-welling light from above to camouflage themselves from predators below. ⁠ #MBARI #cephalomania #deepsea #ocean #underwatervideo #nature #explore #science #wildlife #mondaymood