{"id":752633,"date":"2026-04-25T17:43:19","date_gmt":"2026-04-25T17:43:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/752633\/"},"modified":"2026-04-25T17:43:19","modified_gmt":"2026-04-25T17:43:19","slug":"marine-biologists-solve-mystery-of-deep-sea-golden-orb","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/752633\/","title":{"rendered":"Marine Biologists Solve Mystery of Deep-Sea \u2018Golden Orb\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"

In the lightless depths of the Gulf of Alaska, approximately 3,251 m (two miles) below the surface, a softball-sized golden object clinging to a rock left marine scientists and the general public equally baffled. Was it an egg? A sponge? Something altogether unknown? New research led by the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History suggests a far more intriguing answer: the \u2018golden orb\u2019 is the remains of a rarely seen species of anemone.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"This<\/a><\/p>\n

This \u2018golden orb\u2019 was found at a depth of about 3,300 m in the Gulf of Alaska. Image credit: NOAA Ocean Exploration, Seascape Alaska.<\/p>\n

The \u2018golden orb<\/a>\u2019 was collected on August 30, 2023, by the remotely operated vehicle Deep Discoverer, launched from the U.S. exploration vessel Okeanos Explorer.<\/p>\n

Around 10 cm (4 inches) across, the mysterious object was found among small glass sponges on the seafloor southwest of Walker Seamount in the Gulf of Alaska.<\/p>\n

Its smooth, metallic sheen and torn opening quickly sparked speculation about its origin.<\/p>\n

\u201cInitial examination of the gross morphology revealed the specimen to have no indication of typical animal anatomy (mouth, gut, muscle tissues, etc.), but rather to consist of a loose aggregation of fibrous material covered by a smooth, layered surface,\u201d said study first author Dr. Steven Auscavitch and colleagues.<\/p>\n

Further examination under light microscopy revealed that the surface was packed with specialized stinging structures unique to Hexacorallia<\/a>, a group of cnidarians that includes sea anemones and stony corals.<\/p>\n

\"Relicanthus<\/a><\/p>\n

Relicanthus daphneae has pale purple or pink tentacles that can extend almost 2.1 m (7 feet) long. Image credit: Craig Smith & Diva Amon, ABYSSLINE Project.<\/p>\n

The researchers also examined a similar specimen collected in 2021 during an expedition on Schmidt Ocean Institute\u2019s Research Vessel Falkor and found similar stinging structures.<\/p>\n

Genetic analysis confirmed the connection: DNA recovered from the \u2018golden orb\u2019 matched Relicanthus daphneae<\/a>, an enigmatic deep-sea anemone species known for its large size and long, flowing tentacles.<\/p>\n

Together, the evidence pointed to a surprising conclusion: the \u2018golden orb\u2019 was not a living organism but a biological remnant that formed at the base of the anemone.<\/p>\n

The specimen was the part of a Relicanthus daphneae individual that attached to the rock substrate.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe specimen represents a novel microhabitat consisting of a remnant cuticle originally secreted by Relicanthus daphneae, itself a rarely encountered and recently described species, which occurs between 1,200 and 4,000 m (0.75-2.5 miles), and microbial community living on and beneath its cuticle and tissue,\u201d the scientists said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThese significant discoveries enabled by collection would have been unlikely were it not for its unusual golden color and the specimen\u2019s mysterious egg-like appearance.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"This<\/a><\/p>\n

This Relicanthus daphneae was observed during a 2016 expedition on NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer in the Mariana Islands region. Image credit: NOAA Ocean Exploration, Deepwater Exploration of the Marianas.<\/p>\n

Though seldom collected, Relicanthus daphneae is thought to be globally distributed.<\/p>\n

Individual polyps can reach about 30 cm (12 inches) across, with long, sinuous tentacles that may stretch twice that width.<\/p>\n

Observations suggest the animals perch on rocks or sponges, extending their tentacles into passing currents to capture prey.<\/p>\n

They may also move across the seafloor, potentially leaving behind trails of the same golden cuticle.<\/p>\n

Exactly why they shed this material remains uncertain. One possibility is a form of asexual reproduction known as pedal laceration<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur findings underscore the extent to which the biodiversity and organismal biology of obscure deep sea fauna broadly remain unresolved and highlight the value of whole-specimen collections and rigorous taxonomic follow-up in telepresence-enabled ocean exploration,\u201d the authors concluded.<\/p>\n

Their paper<\/a> was published online April 21, 2026 on the bioRxiv preprint server.<\/p>\n

_____<\/p>\n

Steven R. Auscavitch et al. The Curious Case of the Golden Orb \u2013 Relict of Relicanthus daphneae (Cnidaria, Anthozoa, Hexacorallia), a deep sea anemone. bioRxiv, published online April 21, 2026; doi: 10.64898\/2026.04.17.719276<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"In the lightless depths of the Gulf of Alaska, approximately 3,251 m (two miles) below the surface, a…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":752634,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[8],"tags":[934,309704,309705,309706,5564,15094,19772,309707,309708,12461,307203,31724,309709,309710,309711,309712,159,309713,67,132,68],"class_list":["post-752633","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-science","tag-alaska","tag-cnidarian","tag-cnidocyte","tag-cuticle","tag-dna","tag-gene","tag-genome","tag-gulf-of-alaska","tag-hexacorallia","tag-noaa","tag-okeanos-explorer","tag-pacific-ocean","tag-pedal-laceration","tag-polyp","tag-relicanthus","tag-relicanthus-daphneae","tag-science","tag-sea-anemone","tag-united-states","tag-unitedstates","tag-us"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/116466588833710743","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/752633","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=752633"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/752633\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/752634"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=752633"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=752633"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=752633"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}