The Coan-Schell seacandle is a deep-water marine plant found along nutrient-rich and cold ocean currents in Coan-Schell. Preferring stable, low-light environments of the sublittoral zone, it thrives in dense colonies.

Etymology

From English sea + candle.

Morphology

The plant grows upright in a candle-like shape, its smooth, waxy surface a deep green. Along its stem, it produces gas-filled spherical “seacandle bubbles” ranging from four to twenty centimeters in radius.

Physiology

Mechanisms

The bubbles store and release oxygen to surrounding water, reduce current stress, and possibly aid photosynthesis by scattering dim light.

Behavior

Life Cycle

It produces no flowers, reproducing solely through vegetative propagation by sending new shoots from the base. Individual plants can persist for several decades.

Social Structure

They form a web-like network of interconnected roots, resembling a family unit.

Ecology

Small fish often shelter among the bubbles, while microbial communities and algae-like fungi cling to the surface. The dense mat of interconnected plants forms a resilient network.