Reefs aren’t the only places to view interesting corals and sponges. You can also find unique colonies of life deep in the ocean. Read more after the credits... ******************************************* This is a #repost @mbari_news via @PhotoAroundApp Deep below the ocean's surface underwater mountains are home to spectacular sponge and coral gardens. These corals and sponges create complex, three-dimensional structures that provide habitat for many other animals such as crabs, snailfish, and blob sculpins. Sur Ridge, 35 kilometers off the Big Sur coast and 800 meters below the sea surface, was first explored by MBARI and @MBNMS researchers in December 2013. Since that time, the research team, led by MBARI Senior Scientist Jim Barry, has returned to Sur Ridge five times, conducting a total of 29 ROV dives in the area. As with all MBARI ROV dives, high-definition video was recorded. After the dives, this video was painstakingly analyzed by Linda Kuhnz, a marine biologist in MBARI’s video lab. ⠀ ⠀ As a result, a new field guide was created, identifying more than 260 different species of animals, many of them beautiful and strange. On some slopes of Sur Ridge, fluorescent yellow Picasso sponges cling to the rocky seafloor, growing to half a meter tall. Elsewhere the tree-like branches of bright-pink bubblegum corals extend more than two meters above the ocean bottom. ⠀ ⠀ Learn more about the Sur Ridge Field Guide on our website (link in bio). ⠀ ⠀ #SurRidge #MBNMS #NOAASanctuaries #MarineSanctuary #underwaterphotography #underwatermountain #deepsea #deepsealife #fieldguide #oceanlife #ocean #sealife #sealifefieldguide #crab #deepseacrab #deepseasponge #marinebiology #invertebratezoology #deepseasponge #sponge #taxonomy #animalidentification #MontereyBay #California #BigSur #deepseacoral #bubblegumcoral #Paragorgia #coralgardens #spongegardens #DeepOceanLife