Marine Invertebrate of the Week: Blue Soft Coral/Blue Octocoral

Last weekend, I ventured up to Turtle Bay to explore the tide pools and take pictures for Beth’s limu project. In one tide pool, something bright blue caught my eye. I could not tell what it was from the surface of the water, so I took a few pictures. After browsing through my identification books at home, I discovered I had taken pictures of a Blue Soft coral, also know as Blue Octocoral.

Blue Soft Coral (Sarcothelia edmondsoni)

Blue Soft Coral (Sarcothelia edmondsoni)

Blue Soft Coral (Sarcothelia edmondsoni)

The Blue Octocorals, endemic to Hawai’i, are characterized as soft corals because they have eight-tentacled polyps and an internal skeleton. Hard corals usually have six-tentacled polyps with an external skeleton made of calcium carbonate.