Undersea Myths

Introduction

The mystery behind the underwater display of natural glow, seen by sailors time and again, has been solved. It is the bioluminescent marine fireworm that secretes a mucous which gives out a green glow to attract mates and ward off predators. Reported in the March issue of Invertebrate Biology, the study provides insights into how the fireworm functions and brings scientists closer to isolating the protein responsible for the mechanism. This find has applications in biomedical and related fields.

Source: Down To Earth, May 2009