Chrysogorgiidae Verrill, 1883  

The family Chrysogorgiidae is distributed worldwide, as far North as Greenland and as far South as Antarctica. The depth distribution of chrysogorgiids ranges from 10 to 3375 m, but most species (> 75%) seem restricted to deep water, inhabiting soft and hard bottoms. Even though there is no published quantification of their abundance, chrysogorgiids are considered common by deep-sea biologists, and are often found along with isidids and primnoids. During recent expeditions in the Northwestern Atlantic (Mountains-in-the-Sea, 2003-04; Deep Atlantic Stepping Stones, 2005), chrysogorgiids were revealed by remotely operated vehicles (ROVs) to be among the tallest and most majestic octocoral colonies inhabiting the Corner and New England Seamounts.