Blobfish

The blobfish (Psychrolutes marcidus) is a deep sea fish of the family Psychrolutidae. Inhabiting the deep waters off the coasts of mainland Australia and Tasmania, it is rarely seen by humans.

Blobfish live at depths between 600–1,200 m (2,000–3,900 ft) where the pressure is several dozen times higher than at sea level, which would likely make gas bladders inefficient for maintaining buoyancy.Instead, the flesh of the blobfish is primarily a gelatinous mass with a density slightly less than water; this allows the fish to float above the sea floor without expending energy on swimming. Its relative lack of muscle is not a disadvantage as it primarily swallows edible matter that floats in front of it. Blobfish eat invertebrates like crabs and sea pens.

Blobfish can be caught by bottom trawling with nets as bycatch. Such trawling in the waters off Australia may threaten the blobfish in what may be its only habitat.
The blobfish is currently facing extinction due to deep-sea fishing or bottom trawling.

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Whale learns to blow halo shaped bubble

Whale learns to blow halo shaped bubble

A Beluga whale has become a sensation at an aquarium after learning how to blow halo-shaped bubbles. The extraordinary sight was captured on camera by photographer Hiroya Minakuchi at the Shimane aquarium in Japan. He said:"This beluga started making bubble rings when she was seven. And a couple of years ago she developed her technique. Now she blows the water from her mouth to make a current, which is not visible for us underwater. She then blows air from her blow hole into the current and that makes a ring shape."

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Knabstrupper horses

Knabstrupper horses were bred in Denmark as far back as 1671 when they were called "The Tiger Horses." In 1750, this royal breeding line came to an end. The spotted horse returned in 1812, not as the "Tiger Horses," but with a new bloodline. A mare was purchased of Spanish origin with unusual markings. She was covered by a Frederiksborg Stallion in 1813 and had a colt. The colt was the foundational Sire for the new spotted breed.

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The mimic octopus

The mimic octopus is an intelligent shape changer that can impersonate a host of other animals to dodge hungry predators.
Living in the tropical seas of Southeast Asia, it was not discovered officially until 1998, off the coast of Sulawesi. Recently found in the great barrier reef in Northern Queensland in 2010. The octopus mimics the physical likeness and movements of more than 15 different species, including sea snakes, lionfish, flatfish, brittle stars, giant crabs, sea shells, stingrays, flounders, jellyfish, sea anemones, and mantis shrimp. It accomplishes this by contorting its body and arms, and changing color.
Although all octopuses can change color and texture, and many can blend with the sea floor, appearing as rocks, the mimic octopus is the first octopus species ever observed to impersonate other animals.

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largest animals ever known to have lived on Earth.

Blue whales are the largest animals ever known to have lived on Earth. These magnificent marine mammals rule the oceans at up to 100 feet (30 meters) long and upwards of 200 tons (181 metric tons). Their tongues alone can weigh as much as an elephant. Their hearts, as much as an automobile.
Blue whales reach these mind-boggling dimensions on a diet composed nearly exclusively of tiny shrimplike animals called krill. During certain times of the year, a single adult blue whale consumes about 4 tons (3.6 metric tons) of krill a day.
Blue whale calves enter the world already ranking among the planet's largest creatures. After about a year inside its mother's womb, a baby blue whale emerges weighing up to 3 tons (2.7 metric tons) and stretching to 25 feet (8 meters). It gorges on nothing but mother's milk and gains about 200 pounds (91 kilograms) every day for its first year.
Blue whales are among Earth's longest-lived animals. Scientists have discovered that by counting the layers of a deceased whale's waxlike earplugs, they can get a close estimate of the animal's age. The oldest blue whale found using this method was determined to be around 110 years old. Average lifespan is estimated at around 80 to 90 years.

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Very rare Cantor's Giant Soft Shelled Turtle

Very rare Cantor's Giant Soft Shelled Turtle

The Cantor's giant softshell turtle (Pelochelys cantorii) or Asian giant softshell turtle is a species of freshwater turtle. The turtle has a broad head and small eyes close to the tip of its snout. The carapace is smooth and olive-colored. Juveniles may have dark-spotted carapaces and heads, with yellow around the carapace.

Cantor's giant soft-shelled turtles can grow up to 6 ft (about 2 m) in length. P. cantorii is an ambush predator and primarily carnivorous, feeding on crustaceans, mollusks and fish (although some aquatic plants may also be eaten). The turtle spends 95% of its life buried and motionless, with only its eyes and mouth protruding from the sand. It surfaces only twice a day to take a breath, and lays 20-28 eggs (about 1.2 to 1.4 inches [3.0-3.5 cm] in diameter) in February or March on riverbanks.
The turtle is found primarily in inland, slow-moving, freshwater rivers and streams. Some evidence indicates its range extends to coastal areas, as well.

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MEADOW OF FROST 'FLOWERS' IN THE OCEAN

A MEADOW OF FROST 'FLOWERS' IN THE OCEAN 

Graduate student Jeff Bowman first saw these ‘flowers’ between 3 and 4am from the deck of a ship returning from the North Pole. The temperature had just dropped and when dawn broke he was able to see them much more clearly and for much farther. They appeared to be growing in the cold and dry air all across the surface of the water. He was told they were frost flowers.

Frost flowers are like ice sculptures and they grow on the border between the sea and air. Bowman’s colleague Matthias Wietz took this image on September 2, 2009 when the air was extremely cold and dry; colder than the surface of the ocean. When the conditions in the air are that different from that of the sea, the dryness in the air ‘pulls’ moisture from bumps in the ice which then vaporises. The air gets humid for a little while and the cold makes the water vapour heavy. As the air needs to release the excess weight, the air turns the vapour back into ice, crystal by crystal, creating ‘frost flowers’ up to 7 centimetres high.

The ‘flowers’ themselves suck up seawater and concentrate the salt within; they contain three times the salinity of the ocean. Bowman and his colleagues took a frozen flower and let it melt. Only one to two millilitres of water resulted, though each frost flower hosted about one million bacteria.

As the poles warm, there may be more and more of these frost flower meadows as there will be more open sea turning to thin ice in winter.

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sea lava

This photo, taken by nature photographer CJ Kale, is of lava hitting the surf off of the main island of Hawaii. The water was filled with volcanic glass and lava bombs; the water vapor is the result of the lava superheating the seawater and evaporating it. Lava cools rapidly when it hits seawater, causing minerals to form and crystallize quickly.

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Iconaster Longimanus

Icon Aster longimanus is a starfish from the family Goniasteridae. At the bottom of the body there is a mouth opening. The body consists of a disk with arms. The star may be lost or left

I've only seen this seastar on one out of about 600 dives I've done so far. The photo was taken in the Philippines in February 2007

Image Credit : Dieter

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