Episode Summary
In our newest episode, Bioluminescent Symbiosis, we speak with Dr. Margaret McFall-Ngai, an animal physiologist and biochemist about her work with the Hawaiian bobtail squid (Euprymna scolopes) and its partner, the luminous bacterium Vibrio fischeri. McFall-Ngai provides a great synopsis of how this stable beneficial relationship not only creates light, and supports the bobtail maturation, but can also help us understand what could be going on in the light organs of deep-sea animals.
 
 
Check out our lovely new website where you can find more detailed notes, images and links to the wider reading.
 
 
In this episode…
Welcome back to the Deep-Sea Podcast, your punk take on all things deep sea! 
 
The Professor is jetsetting as always, back in Edinburgh after a stint getting all the equipment ready in the Canary Island and is now happily being confused with professional racecar drivers. He will be back in Perth shortly to celebrate the Deep-Sea center paper publishing streak and reconnect with his Capybara spirit animal. 
 
Thom is being called out in New Zealand Parliament, for all the right reasons, and he spent some Deep-Sea conference time in China, avoiding typhoons and pondering science ideas. 
 
We are also celebrating 300,000 podcast downloads of the podcast, and appreciate our fans immensely! 
 
Our guest this month is Dr. Margaret McFall-Ngai, an animal physiologist and biochemist who is a staff researcher at Carnegie Institution for Science’s Division of Biosphere Sciences and Engineering, with her lab stationed at the California Institute of Technology in Biology and Biological Engineering. Dr. McFal-Ngai talks us through her work on the stable beneficial relationship between the Hawaiian bobtail squid (Euprymna scolopes) and its partner, the luminous bacterium Vibrio fischeri. Although technically not a deep-sea species, this relationship and its details might help us understand how deep-sea life creates bioluminescence and the possible life cycle impacts for the creatures involved. 
 
In the news, get ready for updates on:

Plenty of Science and Art collaboration news including a new collective, social media feeds and an opportunity for scientists to connect with artists. 
Toxic Yellow worms, bright pink snailfish, and chewbacca corals.
An immensely important treaty ratification with worldwide impact. 
Headteeth, yes you read that right.

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On the Discord, we’ve been busy with:

Bobtail squid fostercare
New Boardgame recommendations
Needle felting
New community papers and a Juicy Booty Starfish

 
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Feel free to get in touch with us with questions or your own tales from the high seas on:
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Thanks again for tuning in; we’ll deep-see you next time!
 
Find out more
Social media
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Twitter: @DeepSeaPod
Instagram: @deepsea_podcast
 
Keep up with the team on social media
Twitter: 
Alan - @Hadalbloke
Thom - @ThomLinley 
Instagram: 
Thom - @thom.linley 
Inkfish - @inkfishexpeditions
BlueSky:
Thom @thomaslinley.com
 Alan @hadalbloke
 
Reference list
News 
Links from Friends of the Show:
Skype a Scientist
Products | Support Skype a Scientist with the Squid Facts shop!
Deep Sea Biology Society ArtSea Matchmaking Project
Unseen Ocean Collective.
Unseen Ocean Collective (@unseenoceancollective) • Instagram photos and videos
https://bsky.app/profile/unseenocean.bsky.social
Swedish Biodiversity Symposium, 21 - 23 October 2025
Deep Sea Art + Science Feed on Blue Sky
 
News
Deep-Sea Worm Produces Orpiment, a Toxic Yellow Pigment Used in Historical Art | Scientific American
Mānoa: Chewbacca coral: New deep-sea species spotted in waters off Hawai‘i, Mariana Trench | University of Hawaii News
Nations ratify the world's first treaty to protect international waters
Ghost sharks grow teeth on their heads to mate | ScienceDaily
Descriptions of Three Newly Discovered Abyssal Snailfishes (Liparidae) from the Eastern Pacific Ocean
 
Discord Updates
Applying Deep Learning to Quantify Drivers of Long-Term Ecological Change in a Swedish Marine Protected Area
Diatoms | Board Game | BoardGameGeek
Juicy Booty Starfish
 
Join our Patreon to get access to the Discord
 
Interview Links
A lasting symbiosis: how the Hawaiian bobtail squid finds and
keeps its bioluminescent bacterial partner
A lasting symbiosis: how Vibrio fischeri finds a squid partner
and persists within its natural host
 
Credits
Logo image: Dr. Margaret McFall-Ngai
Theme: Hadal Zone Express by Märvel

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