Meet Marrus claudanielis, the red siphonophore. These siphonophores have a maximum size of 30cm (12in). Like many siphonophores, Marrus live their entire lives swimming and never touching the seafloor. They are found between 500m (1,640ft) and 1,500m (4,920ft) deep.
Red siphonophores capture prey with a curtain of potent stinging cells. They are ethereal and delicate organisms, readily jettisoning body parts when threatened. The cast-off swimming bells are bioluminescent and likely function to confuse predators, but this trait also makes them particularly challenging to study. This species was first described by MBARI researchers and their collaborators using ROV video observations and careful collections.
is a genus of small, floating sea slugs, pelagic marine gastropod mollusks in the family Clionidae, the sea angels. Clione is the type genus of the family Clionidae
“Moo.” Just kidding, this cow isn’t a cow at all… it’s a fish! Meet the longhorn cowfish (Lactoria cornuta), a colorful species that inhabits reefs in the warm waters of the Indo-Pacific. Some scientists think its signature horns protect it from predators, making this fish hard to swallow. But the longhorn cowfish has another trick up its fins: When threatened or stressed, this critter gets toxic! To ward off foes, it can secrete a neurotoxin-filled mucus from its skin. Photo: Christian Gloor, CC BY 2.0, flickr #fish #marinebiology #science #animals #biodiversity #amazingnature https://www.instagram.com/p/CpsK-rgrC78/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=
A Hybodus that I illustrated for an upcoming issue of the Steinkern Magazine under guidance of Sebastian Stumpf. Most reconstructions get the horns wrong.
(image ID: A watercolour painting of a slender shark with serrated spines on its dorsal fins and four horns on its head.)
Suction cups- used for conducting research on whales and for holding your squeegee up in the shower!
Recently, we shared a clip of researchers and scientists in NOAA’s Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary placing a synchronous motion, acoustic, and video recording tag (CATS tag) on the back of a fin whale. The tag, which is held in place by suction cups, allows the team to investigate the whale’s foraging behavior and the noise field received by the whale. Visit our Instagram or Twitter to view the original video.
But, how does this suctioned tag stay attached to the whale?
Once the tag is attached and the whale goes on a deeper dive, the increased pressure helps to push the suction cups on more, getting an even better attachment. These suction cups may be a little stronger than the ones you use in your shower, as this new suction cup technology allows for attachments ranging from few hours to a few days.
NOAA researchers use suction cupped CATS tags as a non-invasive research method so it does not hurt the whale, and if it really wants to, the whale can get it off anytime it wants by breaching (jumping out of the water) or rubbing the bottom. NOAA’s Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary only uses suction cup tags (CATS or DTAGS, another similar sound and motion tag) for the whale research conducted in the field.
Research is conducted under permit No. 18059 issued by the National Marine Fisheries Service to Dr. David Wiley, the sanctuary’s Research Ecologist. The team includes scientists from Syracuse University, University of Michigan, University of California Santa Cruz, Center for Coastal Studies and Ocean Alliance.
hey, im m, and im going to be starting a studyblr! i've tried this before, but i still don't know much about tumblr, so please be patient! i'll be using mstudies as my tag here <3
about me
any pronouns
16yo
entp 7w6
aus
interests
neuroscience seems really cool right now, especially considering how it's such a developing field of science~
marine biology!! just seems really cool overall
chemistry is my all time favourite class at the moment, it's really interesting~
space!! i've never been one for physics, but it's so beautiful!!
what to expect
definitely rambling about how my day has been, what i've done, etc
aesthetic photos~ making your study space look good has a positive effect on how you perceive studying after all~
random pieces of information i'm excited about!! for example, liquid breathing exists, and has medical properties, which i find cool~
study updates on my classes!! speaking of which, i do english, maths, latin, legal, biology and chemistryyy <3
thats all for now, thanks for taking time to read this and i hope you have a nice day/night <3
World's heaviest bony fish weighs in at a whopping 2744 kilograms
A southern sunfish (Mola alexandrini) found dead off the coast of Faial Island in the Azores has broken the record for the world's heaviest bony fish - though there are boneless fish that weigh more
Jellyfish are like beautiful ocean flowers. With their ethereal movements and mesmerizing colors, they are a true wonder of the sea. These graceful creatures drift through the water with a fluidity that is almost hypnotic, their tentacles trailing behind them like delicate petals.
But while they may look like harmless blooms, jellyfish are actually powerful predators. They use their stinging tentacles to capture their prey and defend themselves against predators.
Despite their beauty and danger, jellyfish play an important role in the ecosystem of our oceans. They are an important source of food for many species, and their movements can help distribute nutrients throughout the water.
So next time you see a jellyfish, take a moment to appreciate the beauty of these ocean flowers. But also remember to keep a safe distance, as their stings can be quite painful.
Leptocephalus is the flat and transparent larva of the eel, marine eels, and other members of the superorder Elopomorpha. Leptocephali all have laterally compressed bodies that contain transparent jelly-like substances on the inside of the body and a thin layer of muscle with visible myomeres on the outside.
Today has been another day of #taxonomy #studying with the lovely video walk throughs from our lecturer's @ukadventuregurl and Andy Foggo. Using the lovely Bible of Taxonomy #haywardandryland Handbook of the Marine Fauna of North-West Europe #plymbio #revision #marinebiology #organisms #marinelife #identification https://www.instagram.com/p/Cp6HecithPD/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=
Bottlenose dolphins are crazy: the Christmas party is here (adult content)
Bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) can be considered perverts and one of the craziest creatures in the ocean.
Usually, they are the image of what's a dolphin in the common vision of people. They are cute, lovely animals you can find in aquariums, playing, jumping, and entertaining the public. They are the clowns (in a nice way) of the sea.
But the reality is never as expected. Reality is cruel. Reality is much worse than what we can think of.
In fact, bottlenose dolphins have been discovered to be drug-addicted. Actually, not all populations share the same vices but it has been reported multiple times. Different individuals have been caught playing with puffer fishes to get high on purpose. Indeed, pufferfishes are part of the family Tetraodontidae, in which the members share the possession of a highly poisonous toxin, the tetrodotoxin. See the funny footage from the BBC below.
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But this is not the only weird behaviour they can adopt. Bottlenose dolphins have been reported using different objects and animals, including dead fish and decapitated fish, as a way of giving pleasure to themselves. This applies to both males and females, the latter discovered recently to have also a functional clitoris just as humans do.
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References
Brennan, P. L., Cowart, J. R., & Orbach, D. N. (2022). Evidence of a functional clitoris in dolphins. Current Biology, 32(1), R24-R26.
Muraco, H., & Kuczaj, S. A. (2015). II.(2015). Conceptive estrus behavior in three bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus). Animal Behavior and Cognition, 2(1), 30-48.