Understanding, enjoying and caring for our oceans
Lauren Cameo and Fiona McQueen enjoyed a new freediving experience when they visited Ardrossan jetty recently. They found hundreds of tiny sea cucumbers called Rowedota shepherdi there. The first sighting (Taken by Lauren Cameo) Details can be found on Facebook at any of the following: Facebook 1 Facebook 2 Facebook […]
There has been a recent revision of skeleton shrimp species following the discovery of thousands of skeleton shrimp on commercial fishing nets in the Gippsland Lakes in south-eastern Australia. The discovery led to the review of a species from Far East Asia, a review of previous records, and recognition of a […]
In 2011, this Common Weedfish, Heteroclinus perspicillatus, was stalking a Rockpool shrimp, Palaemon serenus, which it later consumed. (As posted at https://inaturalist.ala.org.au/observations/10002537#activity_comment_948643c9-28f5-4479-b730-e7f9dd2e9a28 ) Both these weedfishes and shrimps are very common in these particular tide pools and channels at Haycock Point, Carrickalinga. The weedfishes and shrimps often appear at peace […]
I have now seen a large (Cerianthid?) tube anemone at Second Valley three times in 8 years. As I explained in my Facebook post at https://scontent.fadl4-1.fna.fbcdn.net/v/t39.30808-6/327280926_775335964105281_4473479003342201618_n.jpg?_nc_cat=100&ccb=1-7&_nc_sid=730e14&_nc_ohc=l0XrzlhZeNwAX-gaXpK&_nc_ht=scontent.fadl4-1.fna&oh=00_AfA9XxDPaM0uUykkaJDKvx_IWS-vKzXif5qIC94bEwr3wQ&oe=63D91959 , “I caught up with 3 ‘old friends’ at Second Valley today (27/1/23).” I wasn’t referring to my dive buddies, but three creatures that […]
The Nature Glenelg Trust (NGT) has been involved in researching and monitoring Goolwa pipi (cockles) population dynamics and associated aspects e.g. recreational pipi extraction impacts. Open season is currently November to May, with a maximum daily bag limit of 300 cockles daily per person. There is also a minimum size […]
Whilst diving at the old Rapid Bay Jetty on 25th October I saw the first decent aggregation of the Great Spider Crab, Leptomithrax gaimardii that I’ve seen for some years now. There were probably more than 200 crabs seen by us today, and there would have been more outside our […]
Canopy algae are a major component of Blue Carbon fixation. Whilst diving at The Bluff (Rosetta Head) on 27th October 2022, I found this Western Pacific Purple Sea Urchin, Heliocidaris erythrogramma: – I have posted it on iNaturalist, along with the following details, at https://inaturalist.ala.org.au/observations/140727962 . Overall, I saw relatively […]
This large sponge in the Darwin Art Gallery and Museum reminds me of how prawn trawling decimated our SA gulfs soft bottom habitats and meadows: – I also think about Smith Bay (on Kangaroo Island) and the huge old green coral colony* there, the survival of which has uncanny shades […]
I now have a copy of Edgar Waite and Herbert Hale’s “Review of the Lophobranchiate Fishes (Pipefishes and Seahorses) of South Australia”, thanks to the generosity of Robert Browne. The review is an ‘Authors’ Reprint’ “From Records of the South Australian Museum, Vol.1, No.4, January 29th, 1921”. Edgar R. Waite […]
There have been a couple of blanket octopus sightings recently. Jacinta Shackleton filmed one whilst snorkelling in the Great Barrier Reef. According to the Twitter post, “This species of pelagic octopus is rarely encountered and will spend its entire lifecycle in the open ocean. The first live male was only […]