Ancient Experiments
(Image credit: Derek Smith/RPM Nautical Foundation)
Ancient amphoras may be able to tell ecologists more about how species move around the seafloor.
Octopus Home
(Image credit: Derek Smith/RPM Nautical Foundation)
Octopuses sometimes make their home inside ancient amphoras.
Ancient Vases as Ecology Experiments
(Image credit: Derek Smith/RPM Nautical Foundation)
Researchers with the RPM Nautical Foundation are starting to document the creatures clinging to ancient vases as they map shipwreck sites throughout the Mediterranean. Here's a gallery of some of their finds.
Tube Worms
(Image credit: Derek Smith/RPM Nautical Foundation)
A close-up of tube worms on the ceramic surface of a centuries-old vase.
Starfish on Vase
(Image credit: Derek Smith/RPM Nautical Foundation)
RPM's data will go into a huge searchable database that paints a full picture of the ecological, geographic and archaeological landscape of the Mediterranean.