Marine researchers know that anything can happen when exploring the underwater world – and that nature can be pretty brutal, both on land and in the ocean. Scientists from NOAA Ocean Exploration were reminded of this during their Voyage to the Ridge expedition in 2022 when they caught something on camera that shocked them all.
The expedition team was watching a seemingly placid scene: an anemone sitting under a ledge with a small fish leisurely passing by.
Then, in a flash, everything changed. Almost as soon as the scientists pointed out the fish, it had vanished into the anemone’s mouth.
“Oh! Oh my god! Oh my god! Oh no! Poor fish. No way!” giggle the scientists nervously, adding “We did not want to see this.”
In the blink of an eye, the anemone had realised its unsuspecting prey had ventured within reach and snapped it up. “This is life in the ocean,” adds another researcher.
The entire predation – which left the stunned “poor fish” inside the anemones mouth with its tail hanging out – happened so quickly that NOAA had to share a slow-motion replay.
As NOAA Ocean Exploration comments on their YouTube video of the surprise predation, “that's the circle of life!”
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Image and video credit: NOAA Ocean Exploration, Voyage to the Ridge 2022
