David Muirhead and I did a dive with three others at Rapid Bay jetty on 9th March 2018. Three of us dived whilst two women just snorkelled. It was a sunny day, and the sea was flat calm. The water was 21-22°C and the vis was fair. My bottom time […]
Hyperiid amphipod commensalism with Jellyfish
Published on :“Hyperiid amphipod commensalism with Jellyfish” by Steve Reynolds The cover for the March 2019 issue of Dive Log magazine featured a photo of a nautilus perched on top of a jellyfish (or sea jelly). It was taken by Mike Bartick (ending with a ‘k’) from the USA. Details can be […]
Second Cerianthid Sighting at Second Valley
Published on :About 4 years to the day later, I have possibly found the same Cerianthid anemone in the same location. I was diving with the same dive buddy, and it was he who pointed the anemone out to me (although he didn’t recall it afterwards). My previous sighting of a Cerianthid […]
The discovery of tiny Upside-down Jellyfish, Cassiopea ndrosia, in West Lakes
Published on :As a result of my first discovery of Upside-down Jellyfish, Cassiopea ndrosia, in December 2016 (The Upside-down Jellyfish, Cassiopea ndrosia ), I was able to recognize the species occurring in the hundreds when I dived in West Lakes in March 2018. I first saw a single tiny specimen: – I […]
The comb jellies Bolinopsis and Mnemiopsis
Published on :I took this ‘one off’ shot of a clear jelly during my dive at Moonta Bay jetty in June 2017. While the photograph is enigmatic, my observations were sufficient for me to pursue a positive identification of the species. It turned out to be a comb jelly, and my interest […]
The Upside-down Jellyfish, Cassiopea ndrosia
Published on :The last thing that I expected to be doing on the first days of my recent retirement from work was studying jellyfish, but that’s exactly what happened! That’s just the way that things go sometimes. It all started over the Queen’s Birthday holiday long weekend last June though, as far […]
Tube Anemone Sighting at Second Valley
Published on :During my Christmas break in January 2015, after not being able to dive for several months between early September and the end of December 2014, I managed to do three dives in the space of one week. Apart from making up for lost time, I was also preparing for a […]
The Swimming Anemone, Phylctenactis tuberculosa
Published on :The swimming anemone, Phylctenactis tuberculosa, may vary in colour from the usual dull orange-brown to olive, to red-brown, to orange, pale pink and light to dark grey-blue, and often combinations of these colours (according to “A field guide to the marine invertebrates of South Australia” by Karen Gowlett-Holmes). I took […]
A Swimming Anemone’s mistaken identity
Published on :The unusual form of the Swimming Anemone was recently mistaken for a bubble coral. Fortunately the Marine Life Society of South Australia’s expert eyes picked up on the error and politely set the record straight. Invertebrate blogger and author of Aristotle’s Lantern Heather Lynn initially suggested on Facebook that the following […]
Aristotle’s lantern and other ‘invertebrate bits’ by Heather Robertson
Published on :Heather Lynn Robertson/Stoker writes a blog on marine invertebrates entitled Aristotle’s Lantern. As the title of her blog suggests, Heather seems to be particularly keen on sea urchins. In her own words, “Aristotle’s lantern… is a hard, calcareous feeding structure comprised of very intricate parts unique to sea urchins.” Here […]