2023 Ponza (November) - Scoglio rosso - Gorgonie

03/11/2023 - Castelfranco Sub:
Stefano, Enrico, Paolo

Gorgonians are an order of soft corals that belong to the large group of Cnidaria, which also includes hard corals, sea anemones, jellyfish and many other species. Gorgonians colonise the seabed all over the world, from shallow coastal areas to deep sea canyons, temperate and tropical areas to polar zones.
Gorgonians’ skeleton can be soft or rigid, horny or calcareous. These organisms can form dense communities that structure the seabed, constituting “animal forests” offering a refuge to a myriad of marine species.
In the Mediterranean, a total of five main species of gorgonians can be found living up to 100 metres below the surface.
The colonies are either male or female and all originate from the planula, a free-swimming or crawling larva type common among Cnidaria. Egg-shaped, the planula uses hairlike projections called cilia to propel itself through the water. It grows slowly (2 to 3 cm/year at most) and can live several decades.