Doug Perrine / Red whip coral {Ellisella sp} Bahamas

David Fleetham / Whip coral (Ellisella cercidia) Tubbatah Reef, Philippines.

David Fleetham / Whip coral goby (Bryaninops amplus) on Whip coral (Ellisella sp). Komodo, Indonesia.

Franco Banfi / Red sea whip coral (Ellisella sp) Lighthouse Reef, Cabilao Island, Bohol, Central Visayas, Philippines, Pacific Ocean.

Ingo Arndt / Fan Coral (Ellisella sp) from Chagos Archipelago, in a collection at Senckenberg Museum, Frankfurt, Germany.

Linda Pitkin / Sea whips, gorgonian coral (Ellisella sp.) Cape Kri, Dampier Strait, Raja Ampat, West Papua, Indonesia, March 2016

Alex Mustard / Seawhip gorgonian (Ctenocella / Ellisella sp) growing in a coral cavern. Ra Province, Viti Levu, Fiji, Polynesia, Pacific Ocean

Georgette Douwma / Gorgonian (Ellisella sp.) growing on granite boulder. Similan Islands, Andaman Sea, Thailand.

Georgette Douwma / Gorgonian whip coral (Ellisella sp.) Similan Islands, Andaman Sea, Thailand.

Juergen Freund / Harlequin ghost pipefish (Solenostomus paradoxus) amongst Red sea whips (Ellisella sp) Kimbe Bay, New Britain, Papua New Guinea.

Georgette Douwma / Sea Whip (Ellisella ceratophyta) on coral reef. Komodo National Park, Indonesia.

Juergen Freund / Red whip corals / sea whips (Ellisella sp) West New Britain, Papua New Guinea.

Juergen Freund / Red whip corals / sea whips (Ellisella sp) bending in the current, Kimbe Bay, West New Britain, Papua New Guinea.

Juergen Freund / Red whip corals / sea whips (Ellisella sp) Kimbe Bay, Papua New Guinea, Indo-pacific.

Fred Bavendam / Chinese Trumpetfish (Aulostomus chinensis) camouflaged in Soft Coral (Ellisella sp), Kimbe Bay, Papua New Guinea

Juergen Freund / Red whip corals / sea whips (Ellisella sp) and various sponges on coral reef, Indo-pacific

Juergen Freund / Whip corals / Sea whips (Ellisella sp) and featherstars (Crinoidea), on coral reef, Indo-pacific

Juergen Freund / Red whip corals / sea whips (Ellisella sp) and various sponges on coral reef, Indo-pacific

Fred Bavendam / Large Whip Goby (Bryaninops amplus) on coral, Australia

Chris Newbert / Soft Coral (Ellisella sp) and Black Coral (Antipathes sp), Indonesia

Chris Newbert / Soft Coral (Ellisella sp), Indonesia

Jurgen Freund / Whip corals (Ellisella sp), with diver in the background. Rowley Shoals, Western Australia

Juergen Freund / Whip coral {Ellisella sp} with feather stars, Indo Pacific

Birgitte Wilms / Sea Fan (Melithaea sp) Sea Fan (Acabaria sp) Sea Whips (Ctenocella ellisella sp) and Golden Damselfish (Amblyglyphidodon aureus) 100 feet deep, Solomon Islands

Chris Newbert / Sponge (Diacarnus spinipoculum) and Soft Coral (Ellisella sp) 90 feet deep, Solomon Islands

Chris Newbert / Soft Coral (Ellisella sp) detail, Coral Sea

Chris Newbert / Soft Coral (Ellisella sp) growing on coral reef, Solomon Islands

Fred Bavendam / Feather Star (Comanthina schlegelii) sitting on Whip Gorgonians (Ellisella sp), Flinders Reef, Coral Sea, Australia

Gary Bell/ Oceanwide / Soft Coral (Ellisella sp) polyps, Great Barrier Reef, Australia

Gary Bell/ Oceanwide / Soft Coral (Ellisella sp) polyps, Anilao, Philippines

Gary Bell/ Oceanwide / Soft Coral (Ellisella sp) polyps, Great Barrier Reef, Australia

Gary Bell/ Oceanwide / Soft Coral (Ellisella sp) polyps, Great Barrier Reef, Australia

Roberto Rinaldi / Coral reef with long sea whips (Ellisella elongata) in the foreground and the silhouette of a diver in the background, Roatan, Honduras. Model released.

Alex Mustard / Twotone wrasse (Halichoeres prosopeion) juvenile, swimming in front of a Sea whip (Ellisella sp.), Raja Ampat, West Papua, Ceram Sea, Pacific Ocean.

Alex Mustard / Red sea whip (Ellisella sp.) on a coral reef, Raja Ampat, West Papua, Ceram Sea, Pacific Ocean.

Alex Mustard / Red sea whip coral (Ellisella sp.) growing on a coral reef, Tubbataha Atolls, Palawan, Philippines, Sulu Sea.

Alex Mustard / Whip coral goby (Bryaninops sp.) hiding in the red branches of a sea whip (Ellisella sp.) on a coral reef. Misool, Raja Ampat, West Papua, Indonesia. Ceram Sea. Tropical West Pacific Ocean.

Alex Mustard / Reef scene with Coral grouper (Cephalopholis miniata), Red sea whip (Ellisella sp) with schooling glassfish (Apogonidae). Daram Island, Misool, Raja Ampat, West Papua, Indonesia. Ceram Sea. Tropical W...

Alex Mustard / A reef scene with an orange elephant ear sponge (Ianthella basta) and red sea whip (Ellisella sp) with schooling silversides fish above. Pelee Island, Misool, Raja Ampat, West Papua, Indonesia. Ceram...

Shane Gross / Coral reef scene with red sea whips (Ellisella sp) and a scuba diver in the background. Kimbe Bay, Papua New Guinea.

Shane Gross / A scuba diver with light looks at a beautiful coral reef with feather stars (crinoid) and red whip corals / sea whips (Ellisella sp) in Kimbe Bay, Papua New Guinea.