Hula Skirt Siphonophore in Hrisey, Iceland - MS Maud - 12th July 2024

On the 12th July in Hrisey (small island off the north coast of Iceland), the Science & Education Coordinator Holly Stainton and her team were using the Blueye underwater drone out in the harbour and managed to film a ‘Hula Skirt Siphonophore’ (Physophora hydrostatica). It took a while to figure out what it was but with the help of iNaturalist we now know the identification! There are only 101 sightings so far on iNaturalist, and we have the first sighting in Iceland 😊
Hula Skirt Siphonophores are found across the globe but are usually deep sea dwelling creatures - typically their range is between 700-1000m deep (not the 3m deep where we found it!). However, they can sometimes be brought to the surface by upwelling (vertical currents).
They are colonial organisms in the class hydrozoan, and are composed of specialised individual animals called zooids which work together as a single entity. They’re also closely related to other siphonophores within the order Physonectae, which includes species like the Portuguese Man o’ War (Physalia physalis).
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