Marrus Orthocanna
A colonial animal composed of a complex arrangement of zooids, some of which are polyps and some medusae.
A pelagic siphonophore in the class Hydrozoa. The best known siphonophore is the Portuguese Man o’ War (Physalia physalis).
(via halfman-halfocean)
My friend Anna Oposa, at 24, is the youngest person ever to win the Future for Nature award. She is unendingly inspirational and truly a force to reckon with. She is not afraid to speak out for a cause she believes in, and in pioneering marine conservation, in particular shark conservation in the Philippines.
She founded the advocacy group ‘Save Philippine Seas’, which works tirelessly to raise awareness about marine conservation issues through social media, and is a platform to petition for changes in laws and bad practices around the country.
Winning the Future for Nature award means that Anna can get started on developing, installing and setting up enforcement procedures for a “shark shelter” in Malapascua - a protected area to safeguard the Thresher Sharks, and the coral reef that houses the cleaning stations they come to visit (and therefore protects the whole ecosystem). If successful, and I have little doubt that it will be (people tend to melt at Anna’s charm), it will be the first shark sanctuary in The Philippines. A move like this will put Philippines on the international map for shark conservation, and should rally international pressure for the government to protect all shark species (at the moment only Whale Sharks are protected through CITES and CMS). The general reaction to the need to save sharks at the moment is “it’s just fish”.
Despite the overwhelming majority of the population of The Philippines living on the coast line, the protection of coral reefs, coastal areas and marine species has been sorely lacking. Times are slowly changing, and it’s thanks to some extremely committed members of the government, and the public (like Anna), that the country is starting to open it’s eyes as to the importance of their sea.
Doto sp.
Unbelievable. Possibly a jellyfish from the genus Deepstaria, only described since the 60s, and until know only known from fragments:
Imperfectly known, many specimens damaged. Two nominal species, information from both combined here based on Russell (1967), Larson (1986), Larson et al. (1988). Bell remarkably thin, broad, delicate … flexing down in “pursing” manner… most specimens reported colorless but deep brown … lining a paler brown recorded once (Larson et al., 1988, as Deepstaria reticulum); more observations needed before value of this as species character can be evaluated.
A pink frogmouth lurks on the ocean floor
by Lia Barrett
(via rhamphotheca)
And another… Coconut Octopus (A. marginatus) by Samantha Craven
This particular octopus just had it’s head sticking out the sand. It slowly prised the sand away with its tentacles and then POPPED out, and it was huge:
Another Coconut Octopus (A. marginatus), this one hiding out in some rubbish.
Photo by Samantha Craven
Flamboyant Cuttlefish (Metasepia pfefferi) by Samantha Craven
This is the only cuttlefish known to walk on the seafloor. It’s tiny cuttlebone size means that it can’t float for very long. It’s mesmerizing colours are aposematic - indicating that it is poisonous.
Plastic Bottle Lifecycle
via plasticispoison <—-Check the tumblr out for more info on the lifecycle of plastic
I’m in love with infographics at the moment. This one in particular. Also, ^^ that blog = awesome.
Longhorn Cowfish (Lactoria conuta) by Samantha Craven
These are silly fish. They swim by rapidly flapping their pectoral fins, so it looks like they are hovering. They go about their business looking for food (benthic algae, various microorganisms, foraminiferans) until they spot you and then they act like they’ve just spotted their ex. They awkwardly change direction, first one way, then the other, and then swim the hell away.
Giggle.
