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The Deepwater Horizon oil spill of 2010 created a unique situation for scientists to better understand the relationship between deep sea corals and creatures that sit among their branches. Plumes of oil and gas from the spill drifted down from the surface to the ocean floor and covered the corals in a smothering “floc”, but a few years after the spill scientists learned that the coral branches that had a brittle star (Asteroschema clavigerum) were healthier.

How might the brittle stars be helping the corals? It’s tough to say for sure, but scientists think they have a pretty good idea. Brittle stars feed by extending their long arms to snatch nutritious particles falling in the water column. It is believed the sea star is able to brush away potentially smothering particles simply through feeding movements.

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