Change of pace from whales...a couple of small critters I encountered while blackwater diving in Palau last year.
The first is probably a swimming mollusc known as a cigar pteropod (Cuvierina columnella), which was around 1cm in size (Thanks Leslie!):
![Cuvierina columnella, cigar pteropod, palau Cuvierina columnella, cigar pteropod, palau](https://www.tonywublog.com/assets/images/2015/02/cigar-pteropod-cuvierina-columnella-blackwater-diving-palau-tony-wu.jpg)
And the second...well, I don't know. I think it's some sort of Cnidarian polyp, but that's just a guess based on the general appearance of the gelatinous, multi-appendaged body with mouth in the middle, once again something around 1cm +/- in size.
![larva of tube anemone, blackwater diving, Palau larva of tube anemone, blackwater diving, Palau](https://www.tonywublog.com/assets/images/2015/02/unknown-jelly-thing-blackwater-diving-palau-tony-wu.jpg)
If you happen to be a Cnidarian specialist and can ID this interesting little critter, please let me know!
There are just so many fascinating forms of life in the ocean.
[Update 10 Feb: Looks like it's the larva of a tube anemone. See this discussion from the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History for more information. ID and link via Allen Collins. Thanks Allen!]