Gulf of Maine Coral Formations Dazzle Scientists

Maine Public | By Jennifer Mitchell

Published September 11, 2014 at 4:56 PM EDT

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Pollack and herring swim past newly discovered Primnoa coral in the Schoodic Ridges of the Gulf of Maine earlier this summer.

Gulf of Maine Deep Coral Science Team 2014/NURTEC-UCONN, NOAA Fisheries, UMAINE

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Primnoa Coral and anemones on the Schoodic Ridges.

Gulf of Maine Deep Coral Science Team 2014/NURTEC-UCONN, NOAA Fisheries, UMAINE

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Herring swim by Primnoa coral on the Schoodic Ridges. The red dots, from lasers, are used to scale and to measure objects on the seafloor.

Gulf of Maine Deep Coral Science Team 2014/NURTEC-UCONN, NOAA Fisheries, UMAINE

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Primnoa coral on the Schoodic Ridges.

Gulf of Maine Deep Coral Science Team 2014/NURTEC-UCONN, NOAA Fisheries, UMAINE

MOUNT DESERT ISLAND, Maine - When you think of colorful, underwater displays of orange and pink coral, your mind probably goes to warm, sunny places like Australia or Hawaii. But this summer, a team of New England researchers discovered massive coral gardens off the coast of Mount Desert Island. It's part of a coral mapping project by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Jennifer Mitchell talks with Rhian Waller, a marine scientist at the University of Maine, about the discovery.

View a video of the coral formations, shot by the Kraken 2.