#ocean biodiversity

[hleavesk]

not sure about the reason yet.

(source: bbc news | 4 dec 2022)

[jellyfishmakeoutparty]

I love butterfly rays because half of the images of them online come in two varieties and it’s

a) a baybey!

b) I know what you are.

[meteorologistaustenlonek]

#ProtectTheOceans #BeneathTheSurfaceLiesTheFuture "Octopus Odyssey expedition is currently underway in the Pacific Ocean, off the coast of Costa Rica, with the objective of investigating underwater mountains that scientists believe harbor distinctive habitats and biodiversity." Schmidt Ocean Institute

[hope-for-the-planet]

Endangered Species Sightings from This Year

This is thought to be the first time in over 20 years that a blue whale was spotted off the Coast of Massachusetts.

I highly recommend watching the video and listening to the reaction of the people on the whale watching boat--the cheers and emotion in some of their voices, especially the woman saying "I'm trying not to" when someone jokingly tells her not to cry.

This is the first time ever that a mother clouded leopard with two cubs has been spotted on a game cam!

"After being considered regionally extinct for over a century, giant anteaters have been spotted roaming once again in Brazil's Rio Grande do Sul state. Scientists have concluded these returned natives ventured over from Argentina's Ibera Park, where conservationists have released around 110 rescued and captive-bred anteaters since 2007."

Over 100 years and the anteaters are finally coming home!

[orangeblossombitch]

The kelp is blooming

[sheltiechicago]

Hyperrealistic Marine Life Portraits Highlight the Ocean’s Incredible Biodiversity

There is an abundance of life underwater that we rarely have a chance to see and appreciate. That is why Portland, Maine-based artist Zoe Keller is giving these diverse creatures a stage in her series titled Ocean Biodiversity. From octopus to starfish to jellyfish, the breadth of marine life is captured in her detailed digital depictions.

[amnhnyc]

The noggin of a hammerhead shark does more than just enhance its good looks. This shark’s uniquely-shaped head improves its sense of smell as well as electroreception! Widely spaced nostrils, and greatly enlarged scent organs on its snout, enable it to detect the direction a scent is coming from. And wide-set eyes provide excellent 3D vision. Fun fact: of the some 400 shark species known to science, only 9 are hammerheads.

Photo: Mark Chivers, CC BY-NC-ND 2.0, flickr

[scienceacumen]

This is a metal snail (Volcano Snail) that lives on underwater volcano vents in the Indian Ocean. Its shell and scaly feet both are armoured with layers of iron, making it the only animal to incorporate iron sulfide into its skeleton 🐌

📷: Dr Chong Chen/IUCN

[protectoursharks]

Got facts about pyjama sharks? They are very cute :)

Pyjama shark or striped catshark (Poroderma africanum).

You're 100% right, they're absolutely adorable. These little guys only grow to be approximately 1.1 m (3.6 ft) long. These sharks are primarily nocturnal and hunt small fish, crustaceans, and shark egg cases. They capture prey the same way that crocodiles do! They'll bite onto their prey and roll to disorient and kill it.

These sharks are endemic to the waters of the South Africa coast (aka, that's the only place they're found in the wild). The biggest threat to their population is being caught as bycatch. The good news is that their populations are believed to be increasing and their conservation status is that of least concern!

[strawlessandbraless]

A group of jellyfish is called a SMACK

[reasonsforhope]

[Warning: Graphic (some very graphic) shark-fishing pictures at the link.]

"Suhardi isn’t your average snorkeling guide. Born on the Indonesian island of Lombok, he’s spent his life on water. While he now seeks out sharks for the enjoyment of tourists, he once hunted sharks to help earn money to feed his family and educate his two children.

Suhardi was a fisherman for more than 20 years. He first started fishing working on his parents’ boat, but was then asked to join the crew of a shark boat where he was told he could earn a lot of money. Back on deck, he looks embarrassed to divulge what a meager wage it was, but finally confesses he earned around $50 for up to a month at sea.

Now he and 12 other former shark fishermen are part of The Dorsal Effect, an ecotourism company that helps ex-shark hunters find a new vocation. Each week, the team takes groups of tourists, schoolchildren and university students to off-the-grid locations and guides them around pristine reefs. Each trip is designed to take guests on an exploratory journey of both the shark trade and marine conservation through the eyes of the Sasak people of Lombok.

Lombok is a hotspot for marine diversity, sitting just east of the Wallace Line, a biogeographical boundary separating Asia and Australia and their respective fauna. Pristine coral gardens and around 80 species of sharks can be found in its waters. The island is also part of the world’s largest shark-fishing nation. Only the whale shark (Rhincondon typus) is protected in Indonesia; all other sharks can be legally caught.

The Dorsal Effect first launched in 2013, a year after Suhardi met Singaporean ecologist Kathy Xu, who had traveled to Lombok to find out more about the shark trade. The diminutive but quietly determined Xu wanted to protect sharks, but because she knew shark fishing was poorly paid and dangerous, she wanted to hear the fishermen’s stories too. They told her how once they could fish for sharks close to shore, but now with the shark population dropping, the fishermen said they needed to travel farther out to sea, only to come home with a relatively poor catch. The reduced catch also meant reduced pay, so they often couldn’t cover their costs...

Yet, when Xu asked why fishers didn’t seek out another trade, she learned they didn’t want to be separated from the sea. They saw it as part of their heritage.

But as they spoke longer, the shark fishermen talked about the coral gardens that could be found under the waves, ones that only they knew about. Inspired by a whale shark diving trip she’d taken with scientists on the Great Barrier Reef, Xu had an idea. “If such spots exist,” she recalls telling the fishers, “I could take tourists out with you and pay you more than you earned shark fishing”.

At first, Xu guided the former shark fishermen on how to become eco-friendly tour operators. They dropped anchor away from the reef, served guests plant-based dishes, and made sure all trash was taken back to shore. But then Xu saw that something special was happening: The former fishermen had started to take the guest experience into their own hands, making sure tourists felt at home. Suhardi painted “Welcome” in large letters over the front of his boat, fitted green baize to the top deck for outdoor seating, and hung curtains in the cabin so his guests could enjoy some shade.

Suhardi has already bought a new boat with his earnings from snorkeling trips. “Every day is my best day,” laughs Suhardi, whose smile always travels from his mouth to his eyes.

While they were receiving tourists from across the globe, there was another group that Xu wanted to reach out to. “I think it was the teacher in me who felt impassioned about influencing the young,” she says. She reached out to schools and created a five-day program that would help students understand the shark trade and local conservation efforts. During the program, paid for by the school and students, participants would not only meet the ex-shark fishermen so they could ask them about their lives, but also hear from NGOs such as the Wildlife Conservation Society about their efforts to slow the trade. The Dorsal Effect also hired marine biologists to host nightly lectures and help the students with their field surveys...

The students were faced with the realities of the fishing trade, but they were also encouraged to take a balanced view by The Dorsal Effect team. The villagers weren’t just taking the fins, and throwing away the rest of the shark; they processed every piece of the animal. While they did sell the meat and fins to buyers at the market, they also sold the teeth to jewelers, and the remains for pet food.

The Dorsal Effect also takes students on an excursion to the fishermen’s village, a small island that lies off the coast of Lombok. Marine biologist Bryan Ng Sai Lin, who was hired by The Dorsal Effect team, says that on one trip with students he was surprised by how quickly the young people understood the situation. “One of them said it’s good to think about conservation, but at the same time these people don’t really have any other choice,” Lin says....

Conservation scientist Hollie Booth of Save Our Seas, which does not work directly with The Dorsal Effect, says the need to provide legal profitable alternatives to shark fishing is critical: “We are never going to solve biodiversity and environment issues unless we think about incentives and take local people’s needs into account. These kinds of programs are really important.”"

-via Mongabay, December 15, 2023

[wikipediapictures]

Sea otter

“A close-up of a sea otter, taken in Morro Bay, California in 2016.” - via Wikimedia Commons

[useless-catalanfacts]

Mahi mahi, Dolphinfish, Dorado & Lampuga, all names for the Coryphaena hippurus! These colourful fish are found in the Mediterranean Sea at this time of year (August-November), often aggregating underneath objects floating on the surface.

They live for up to five years, and can get to a meter in length!

By Save the Med Foundation.

In Catalan they're called llampuga, llampec or daurat.

[herbalnature]

A green sea turtle glides effortlessly above the coral, surrounded by a shimmering curtain of fish. It's a peaceful underwater dance full of grace and serenity.

[wachinyeya]

'Living Breakwater' Makes Room for Oysters and Tidal Pools In Award Winning Design off Staten Island https://www.goodnewsnetwork.org/living-breakwater-makes-room-for-oysters-and-tidal-pools-in-award-winning-design-off-staten-island/

[amnhnyc]

The Summer Games are here! No one has ever witnessed the battle displayed in the Museum’s Sperm Whale and Giant Squid Diorama IRL... Choose your fighter! 🦑🥊🐋