Tag: ocean

Stethacanthus: This Is the Weirdest-Looking Shark Ever & It’s 100% Real

typhlonectes:

The ocean will
seemingly never run out of strange creatures to baffle the mind —
especially when you factor in the extinct ones from millions of years
ago.

You think the hammerhead shark or the barreleye fish are weirdly built, right? But, then you hear about animals like the ancient Dunkleosteus or the giant sea scorpion,
and you’re probably like, “Wow I am so glad I didn’t live in a time
where 8-foot swimming scorpions and fish with blades for teeth existed.”

Millions of years ago, the sea was kind of a free-for-all in terms of what nightmare animals lived there. Take, for instance, the Stethacanthus, a shark with spikes on its head and dorsal fin.

And it’s the weirdest-looking dorsal fin you’ll ever see…

Stethacanthus: This Is the Weirdest-Looking Shark Ever & It’s 100% Real

anudibranchaday:

The Shaggy Mouse Nudibranch or Common Grey Sea Slug (Aeolidia papillosa) is an Aeolid nudibranch that is covered in cerata, giving it its “shaggy” appearance. Growing up to 12cm in length, it lives in colder waters than most nudibranchs, residing in the Atlantic coast of the British Isles and Northern Europe, the Atlantic coast of North America, and the northern Pacific coast of North America. It feeds on anemones, not only being immune to the stinging cells but reusing them to defend itself as well, by attaching them to its cerata!

Source: anudibranchaday

This bewhiskered “Fairy Crab” is the tiniest teddy bear of the ocean

typhlonectes:

Somehow this miniature hairy squat lobster ended up with
a near-florescent pinkish-purple hue, little yellow eyes, and a thick
golden fleece all over. And at just a few millimetres long, it’s as
compact as it is adorable.

Seriously, just stop and consider how small that
actually is – these things are smaller than your fingernail, which
explains where they got their nickname ’fairy crab’ from.

Found off the coast of Western Australia,
Indonesia, the Philippines, and Japan, the hairy squat lobster (Lauriea
siagiani) makes its home on giant barrel sponges (Xestospongia
testudinaria), where it sits and catches ocean detritus in its ‘fur’

It then uses its smaller, ’un-hairy’ legs to
collect the particles and eat them. And it looks a whole lot stranger
than it sounds…

This bewhiskered “Fairy Crab” is the tiniest teddy bear of the ocean

noaasanctuaries:

🎶 Who captures fish raw with two sets of jaws? That’s a moray! 🎶 

Look closely – but not too closely – and you can see how the purplemouth moray eel gets its name. This is one of several species of moray eel that can be found in the reefs of Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary. 

(Photo: G.P. Schmahl/NOAA)

Source: noaasanctuaries

neaq:

oceanportal:

todropscience:

MATING DEEP-SEA ANGLERFISH RECORDED ON VIDEO FOR THE FIRST TIME

Scientists have hardly ever seen anglerfishes alive in their natural environment, in fact, what we know about these weird fishes comes from specimens caught in traps and brought to the surface.  But now a video recorded in 2016 at a depth of 800 meters in the waters around Portugal’s Azores islands, has surprised the science community.

The high-quality video shows a female fanfin angler

anglerfish (Caulophryne jordani), resplendent with bioluminescent lights and  elongate translucent filaments

projecting outward from her body. She is also attached to a male, who basically acts as a sperm provider.

Males have well developed sense organs that are used to find a female. When a male finds a female, he bites her and doesn’t let go. His skin fuses with the female and he becomes a parasite symbiont on her. Love is love.

  • Video footage: Kirsten and Joachim Jakobsen
    Rebikoff-Niggeler Foundation

Very cool!

Cannot. Stop. Watching. 

typhlonectes:

Extremely Rare (and Peculiar) Fish Found Off Coast of Tasmania

The new population could double the known numbers of these oddball creatures

by Briget Katz

The red handfish is a funny little critter that uses its fins to scuttle along the rocky seafloor. Dwelling exclusively in the waters off Tasmania, it is also one of the rarest fish in the world. So researchers were excited to find an entirely new population of red handfish hiding amidst Tasmania’s reefs. As Calla Wahlquist reports for the Guardian, the discovery may double the number of known red handfish.

Previously, scientists were aware of only one red handfish population of between 20 and 40 individuals, which swim along a stretch of reef in the Frederick Henry Bay. But a member of the public recently reported seeing a little handfish in a nearby area. So seven divers from the University of Tasmania’s Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies and the citizen science project Reef Life Survey set out to try and find these elusive marine creatures…

Read more: Smithsonian Magazine

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earthstory:

A large colony of garden eels sway and feed in the gentle currents off Dumaguete Philippines. Garden eels are extremely shy and harmless members of the conger eel family. They live in burrows on the sea floor and are very social creatures that form large colonies. The currents deliver a a continuous passing supply of plankton allowing the eels to feed in the comfort and safety of their sandy home. As our team approached this giant colony they quickly vanished into their burrows as if they never existed. I find these colonies to be hypnotic living gardens in the sea. Thank you to Leandro Blanco for video support. On assignment for @natgeo Philippines, Inside the Coral Triangle.
#DiscoverOcean

breathinginbiology:

The Elysia chlorotica, more commonly known as the Eastern Emerald Elysia, is a species of green sea slug that is found along the east coast of the United States. The juvenile sea slugs feed on intertidal algae but instead of digesting the entire cell contents, it retains only the algal chloroplasts by storing them in their extensive digestive system. Over time, these chloroplasts are incorporated into the slug’s cells and the slug is able to undergo photosynthesis as a means of obtaining energy.

Source: breathinginbiology