Every night at sundown, a mass of mostly small sea creatures rises up from the depths into the topmost layers of the ocean. This daily vertical migration is the largest on Earth, with an estimated 11 billion tons of animals moving upwards each night. The animals make this journey to feed on the organic material closer to the water's surface to avoid being eaten by the larger predator swimming there.
The nighttime migration was first discovered by the U.S. Navy in the 1940's. Researchers, hobby divers and photographers have gone out to scuba dive at night to see nocturnal creatures.
Blackwater diving has evolved from a hobby to a passion for Linda and Susan. The two met in an underwater photography club in Florida and both tried their first night dive after another member of the club recommended it to them. I never thought of doing this type of photography. She hasn't done anything else since she started.
A light attached to a diver's underwater camera illuminates the dark water in small patches to help them spot tiny animals.
Ianniello and her husband Jim began posting pictures to a Facebook group with other blackwater diving enthusiasts to identify some of the creatures they captured on film. Scientists at the Florida Museum of Natural History were able to identify some of the specimen that they noticed. Until then, most of the creatures had only been caught in nets and mangled. The researchers and amateur photographers exchanged information quickly. Ianniello says it was a win-WIN for both sides. Several specimen photographed by Ianniello and Susan and Jim have not been fully identified. A book of their photography was published.
Carbon dioxide is sequestered in the deep sea by vertical migration. Animals migrate to the surface where they feed on plants that absorb carbon dioxide. The deep pelagic zone is where the creatures deposit the carbon-rich material as waste. There is little known about these creatures. Warming seas and underwater drilling are affecting their habitats. A glimpse of them in their natural habitat is a major advancement.
The butterflies live in the upper layers of the ocean. The specimen photographed in Florida is roughly the size of a quarter. There is a glowing bulb in its stomach.
Box Jelly can be found at a depth of up to 40 feet. It is between two and two and a half inches long. Box most box jellies in this region sting but are not fatal.
The shrimp is about an inch long and is found off the coast of Indonesia. These creatures use their fore limbs to attack fish and mollusks.
To help scientists learn more about the Larval tube anemone from Florida, Susan Mears and Linda Ianniello have begun taking pictures of the animals in their natural environment and have begun collecting samples to be analyzed. There are many samples that haven't been identified.
When she first saw this creature, she thought it was a fish. It was great to see it. I exclaimed, "Oh my gosh, wow." Normally found in deep water, the adult gargoyle Cusk eel is the only member of its family.
Adults of this species live in deep water and are very rare. It's about the size of a fingernail.
The seabather's eruption is an itchy rash caused by the sting of the La thimblerval Jellyfish that get under people's bathing suits. Ianniello has seen fewer of these creatures in the last five years.
The specimen is about 3 to 4 inches long. They are hard to photograph and transparent. Ianniello says that they make it easier to shoot if they slow down or stop.
Susan says the tube anemone is three to three and a half inches in length. The larger the tube anemones, the smaller the feeding tentacles at the top of their body.
A pelagic worm can form an image.
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