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October 9, 2020: Dandelion Siphonophore

This type of animal was originally discovered by geologists during a 1977 expedition; not being sure what it was, they referred to it as a “dandelion.” Scientists now know that it is a siphonophore, a relative of the Portuguese man-of-war. Dandelion siphonophores belong to the order Siphonophorae and suborder Physonectae and are further classified in the family Rhodaliidae, which are unusual and unique siphonophores because rather than swimming in the water column like other siphonophores, they anchor themselves to the seafloor using their tentacles. This one was imaged during the Galápagos Rift Expedition 2011.

Image courtesy of the NOAA Office of Ocean Exploration and Research, Gal´pagos Rift Expedition 2011. Download larger version (jpg, 1.1 MB).

This type of animal was originally discovered by geologists during a 1977 expedition; not being sure what it was, they referred to it as a “dandelion.” Scientists now know that it is a siphonophore, a relative of the Portuguese man-of-war. Dandelion siphonophores belong to the order Siphonophorae and suborder Physonectae and are further classified in the family Rhodaliidae, which are unusual and unique siphonophores because rather than swimming in the water column like other siphonophores, they anchor themselves to the seafloor using their tentacles. This one was imaged during the Galápagos Rift Expedition 2011.

Learn more about these unusual animals in this mission log, “Enigmatic Invertebrates: The Dandelion Animal.”