August 31, 2021: Sea Spider and Coral
Image courtesy of NOAA Ocean Exploration, Deep-Sea Symphony: Exploring the Musicians Seamounts. Download larger version (jpg, 1.3 MB).
While exploring Mendelssohn Seamount as part of the Deep-Sea Symphony: Exploring the Musicians Seamounts expedition, we observed this sea spider on a bamboo coral that had been colonized by yellow parazoanthids.
The Musicians Seamounts are a province, or collection, of about 25 underwater mountains in the central Pacific Ocean just north of the main Hawaiian Islands and bordering the eastern boundary of Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument. Small portions of this 650-nautical-mile seamount chain had been previously mapped during transits, but the Deep-Sea Symphony expedition included the first dedicated mapping operations and exploration using remotely operated vehicles of the seamounts, helping us understand this fascinating region that lies just outside the U.S. Exclusive Economic Zone.