Savalia lucifica, commonly known as the luminescent parazoanthid, is a form of false black coral in the family Parazoanthidae. It is known from the Pacific Ocean where it lives at depths of around 700m (2,300feet) off the coast of California, but more recently (2011) has been discovered in the Mediterranean Sea at a depth of 270m (890feet). This zoanthid exhibits bioluminescence.[1]
Savalia lucifica was first described by Cutress & Pequegnat in 1960. The type specimen was recovered from the seabed at a depth of 700m (2,300feet) in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of California. In 2011 the same species was recovered from a depth of 270m (890feet) in the Mediterranean Sea by a robot submersible operated from the Italian oceanographic ship "Astrea". This vessel was undertaking exploration and research into the deepwater red coral populations of the Aegean Sea at the time.[1]
Savalia lucifica emits light when stimulated, for example when stroked gently by a finger. In the Mediterranean Sea, this zoanthid uses the deepwater gorgonian Callogorgia verticillata as a substrate.[2]