Video: Meet the Venus fly-trap sea anemone!

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This footage of the rather sinister looking Venus flytrap sea anemone, Actinoscyphia sp. was shot near the 'Moki' seamount, on the northern region of the American Samoa Exclusive Economic Zone, by NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer. It's a deep sea species that closes its tentacles to capture prey or to protect itself. This one is perched on top of a dead Iridogorgia coral — watch it closing up as the remotely operated vehicle (ROV) approaches. It's easy to see how it got its common name.

Video courtesy of the NOAA Office of Ocean Exploration and Research, 2017 American Samoa.