Marine biologists have, for the first time, captured a video of a new species of seadragon alive in the wild.
The rare species, ruby seadragon, was filmed off the south coast of western Australia. Previously, the only samples of ruby sea dragons were ones that had washed ashore.
Scientists say it has been confirmed now that ruby sea dragons lack leaf-like appendages; a feature that would distinguish them from all other sea dragons.
Footage of the new species was captured using a remotely operated vehicle with a low-light video camera, because it lives at depths of more than 50 meters.
The new video shows the seadragon’s intense red color and reveals it has a prehensile tail, much like seahorses.