My Guide, Don-don, is amazing! He can see tiny creatures near, and also in the distance.
It was wonderful to be back in the water again, cruizing along the bottom, searching for 'something'. It is so relaxing. I don't actually 'discover' much on my own; but i did find some creatures, and i was proud of that. But mostly, I rely on Don-don. He never disappoints.
This one is lovingly called Shaun the Sheep (from the movie, which i knew nothing about) because i guess it looks like him. These tiny guys were on a ‘leaf’ about the size of a quarter. They are smaller than a grain of rice. So damn cute. We saw this one on the dive with Glen.
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| Costasiella usagi Ichikawa |
I saw this one myself, it is rather large and brightly colored, and pretty difficult to miss :) It is a Tunicate, also called ‘Sea Squirts’ because they squirt water out of their siphons. They are ‘Filter Feeders’ and have 2 siphons: one takes water in, particles from the water are extracted for food, the second siphon expels the cleaned water out. In this way they help improve water quality. Research is now studying that they may have anti-cancer properties; and also certain types can be used repair or grow human muscle tissue. There’s your fun fact for the day.
This beautiful Sea Urchin is also a ‘filter feeder’. This video shows the expulsion . They are said to be “the only animals on earth that can eat so many different kinds of food,”
Don-don pointed this CuttleFish out to me. He was no bigger than my little finger, and blended in perfectly with that leaf. He had to point several times ... as he usually has to :( They are among the most intelligent invertebrates, with one of the largest brain-to-body-size ratio. Isn't he just cute as can be?
He also pointed out many tiny Nudibranchs. They are all different, but beautiful. A Nudibranch is also called a Sea Slug, it is like a snail without a shell. They range from 1/4 inch to 12", and have eyes, embedded in their skin, so very difficult to see. Each one is simultaneously a male and a female. They possess reproductive organs of both sexes, although a nudibranch cannot fertilize itself. While mating, side by side, they fertilize each other, then both lay eggs. The name Nudibranch essentially means 'naked gills' and refers to the fact that without a shell, the gills are exposed. Gills are what they use to 'breathe'. The 'frilly' parts sticking up on the left, are the gills.
Some Nudis have gills called 'cerata' that look like spikes sticking out of their bodies like this one.
The other distinguishing feature of the Nudi are their Rhinophores,
which look like horns. They use them to 'smell' and find their food.
Another part of their anatomy are their 'oral tentacles', which helps them feel their way, but also probably detects smells. They are on either side of their mouth. They are very visible in this photo.. The rhinophores are pulled back, and are golden ... but the 'tentacles' are way out front, and beautiful varigated purple.
There are over 3000
Nudibranchs, and it's difficult to get an accurate identification. I think this one is a Fabellina,... i see a couple rhinophores. Sure is pretty .. in Pink !
We saw two different species of Octopus. This is a Wunderpus Octopus. It was very tolerant of me. I do try to be kind and respectful.
But eventually it decided to seek a safer haven, ... very very slowly! This is so cool, how it navigates all those 'legs' into that tiny hole.
but it didn't want to leave me entirely. He was still sitting there like this when i left.
The other octopus we (Don-don) found is the Blue Ringed Octopus ... a much sought after specimen .. and he found TWO of them on the same dive. The first one was so tiny, like the size of a thimble. It was very active! Their size can be up to 5"
The second one was the largest one Don-don had ever seen. I watched him for minutes, and he had no intention of making a move. Sometimes people try to provoke movement, but i observed and left. I had never heard this before, but "They are one of the world's most venomous marine animals, carrying enough venom to kill 26 adult humans within minutes" ... but they are relatively docile. And like most animals ... avoid humans! It kills it's prey by releasing venom that paralyzes the muscles, which effectively kills the prey.
There were other creatures that entertained me while Don-don was working. Here area some reef fish photos.
and Don-don doing his 'thing'... looking for something for me to see !
a little Goby fish that posed for me :)
i actually found this Spotted Porcelain Crab, way beneath some Nemos and their Anemone home. He sure looks angry !
These are the Nemos ...
I can never get enough Frog Fish. This was a TINY juvenile Painted Frog Fish. Although it was bright red-orange ... i still never would have seen it. The size of a pea ! Look at it's white-painted pedicure :)
This is another Juvenile Painted Frog Fish coloring, that i have never seen before. I missed the 'signal' for FrogFish that he game me, so i didn't know what i was looking at. so, it was/is unrecognizable to me. Next time i'll know what i was looking at. I now see that the left side is his tail......grrrr
Don-don found a different, more colorful 'Shaun the Sheep' ...
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| Costasiella kuroshimae Ichikawa |
There are many other interesting specimens on the sea floor ... that are almost impossible to miss. This is a Sea Pen, named for the old writing pen. The Sea Pen is actually a Coral.
This is a Crinoid, or Feather Star... sometimes they are called Sea Lilies. They can anchor themselves to coral like these two. They are beautiful.
They are related to Sea Stars and have 5 fold symmetry, that can be divided into as many as 200 'arms'. Their arms collect food from the water. They can also untether themselves and 'swim' freely around the sea. This is more frequently seen at night. This one was on the sand.
There were many Tube Anemones, in a variety of colors. They can withdraw into their tube if disturbed.
They have two whorls and sizes of tentacles. The large outer whorl extends outwards, and mostly used in food capture and defence. The smaller inner tentacles are more erect, and used for food manipulation and ingestion. You can clearly see the 2 different whorls in this photo.
Another related Sea Star is the Brittle Star. It is also seen on the sea floor, and can quickly retract if disturbed.
and this is a Burrowing Brittle Star, just a couple of inches tall.
This is a vivid colored Urchin ... it was almost sparkling
There is so much color down there, that is large enough and easy to see, ...on an otherwise drab colorless sea floor.
A couple more Nudi's ... that are NOT easy to see because they are so tiny.
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i actually found this one myself !
And ... finally ... a Sea Horse ! They sure move around alot, and always away from me ! Cute little Buggers !
This is a Sea Star Shrimp .... and... it was living on a Sea Star... i finally caught a photo of him on the underside of one of the 'arms'. He was not being very coopertive ! So so tiny !
This is a fish, called a Flying Gurnard. At one point in the video, he spreads his 'wings' and they look like a ButterFly! A very cool find, and memories of the first one i saw on Caymen Island with my first Snorkel Buddy, Kathy Dilsaver.
On my last dive as i entered the water, i noticed my right hand
started burning. It wasn’t until i got out of the water that i
realized i’d been attacked by a jellyfish. Supposedly, there usually
aren’t any here. My luck. I don’t wear a glove on that hand so i can
operate my camera. I think i will cut the fingertips off the right
glove and start using it. My skin is so sensitive and reacts to
everything. This itching adds to the itching from the Chiggers …
Benadryl only helps a little :(
As i mentioned in my last blog, with 4 good dives under my belt, i decided to head back to Bohol. When we arrived at Jagna-Bohol, there was another surprise. We had to line up our bags and 'stand back' ! This too is new.
I chose to get another driver to take me back to Bohol, rather than the 3hr bus ride ....i'm getting soft :)
Back in Bohol, the sun is shining, and i'm with my ‘family’. More details and fun about my last week with them in the next blog.
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