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Our world under the waves

@worldunderthewaves.bsky.social

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Sharing stories about the oceans and how they affect our lives, sometimes in unexpected ways. Stay tuned here for links and bitesize content. For full length, original articles visit https://ourworldunderthewaves.com/

ourworldunderthewaves.com

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Our world under the waves @worldunderthewaves.bsky.social · 18d

***NEW ARTICLE OUT NOW***
Maerl, a suspiciously coral-like red seaweed with spaces in between the nodules, great for all kinds of creatures needing a place to hide and grow.

Maerl- Living Labyrinths

by Matthew Norton In the ocean, things are not always as they appear to be. For example, corals can easily be mistaken for some kind of hardened plant or seaweed, rather than the colony of polyps (…

ourworldunderthewaves.com

Our world under the waves @worldunderthewaves.bsky.social · 1d

These sheets of “Gim”, the Korean word for a number of edible seaweeds that are roasted (sometimes oiled and salted as well), can be used to make kimbap, a dish that is similar to sushi. It can be served with a number of different meats and vegetables.

Our world under the waves @worldunderthewaves.bsky.social · 2d

Collecting and analysing whale poo might not be the prettiest job in the world. But there’s a lot we can work out from their stool samples, including:
🐳The health of the whale populations
🐳The state of the ocean in which they swim
🐳The composition of the swarms of tiny creatures on which they feed

Whale scat shows rising ocean temperatures are linked to more algal bloom toxins entering the food chain

Researchers have measured toxins in scat samples from 205 bowhead whales from the Beaufort Sea, collected over 19 years, and found that algal toxin concentrations changed with ocean temperatures, the ...

phys.org

Our world under the waves @worldunderthewaves.bsky.social · 3d

These beautiful nudibranchs (i.e. sea slugs) all belong to the same species, Phyllidia ocellata, and are often yellow with 4-10 black rings with white borders. "Often" seems to be the best word to use, since these images show how a pattern can vary even within a species.

Our world under the waves @worldunderthewaves.bsky.social · 5d

Media Monday #59🧽

An artistic reconstruction of Eocyathispongia qiania, an ancient sea sponge dated back to 600 million years ago, and then hidden to mysteries of time until a fossilised specimen was discovered in China in 2015.

Our world under the waves @worldunderthewaves.bsky.social · 7d

Happy World Migratory Bird Day 🐦

These Red Knots migrate thousands of kilometres between their breeding grounds on the Arctic tundra and the temperate/tropical mudflats where they live for the rest of the year. Along the way, they rely on the bounty of horseshoe crab eggs for a much needed pit stop

Our world under the waves @worldunderthewaves.bsky.social · 8d

The chances of an encounter are going to be higher, but the chances of an attack are still incredibly remote. Even lower still when you take proper precautions, such as avoiding swimming in murky water where mistakes are easier to make.

Bull sharks linger in warming Sydney waters

Bull sharks are lingering off Sydney's beaches for longer periods each year as oceans warm, researchers said Friday, predicting they may one day stay all year.

phys.org

Our world under the waves @worldunderthewaves.bsky.social · 10d

Happy World Octopus Day 🐙

There are few cephalopods as cute, but deadly as a blue ringed octopus. This particular individual is a greater blue ringed octopus and its venom glands are armed with tetrodotoxin, a potent neurotoxin (also used by pufferfish) that intereferes with the nervous system.

Our world under the waves @worldunderthewaves.bsky.social · 12d

Media Monday #58📽️

An early scene from the classic bond film “From Russia with Love” that uses Siamese fighting fish as a straightforward analogy to explain Spectre’s sinister plan to pit British and Russian spies against each other, kill Bond and then slip away with a decoding device.

From russia with love 1963

YouTube video by film scenes

www.youtube.com

Our world under the waves @worldunderthewaves.bsky.social · 12d

Happy World Habitat Day 🏝️

And a pleasent reminder that even small, living spaces can provide valuable habitat for the even smaller ocean residents. Such as (left to right) a bryozoan colony on a mussel shell, barnacles on a whelk shell and a whole mass of life on the back of a spider crab.

Our world under the waves @worldunderthewaves.bsky.social · 14d

Happy World Animal Day 🐋

It’s common knowledge these days that blue whales are the largest known animals on the planet. But Myxozoans (microscopic cousins of anemones and jellyfish) are the smallest. Going down to 8.5µm (0.0085mm), they survive as parasites of fish and other sea creatures.

Our world under the waves @worldunderthewaves.bsky.social · 16d

Seems octopuses evolved their own kind of pea shooter long before we came up with the same idea.

'She turns her siphon into a gun': Watch coconut octopus firing stones at fish in world-1st footage

Octopus filmed firing stones from her siphon from inside a clam shell like a sniper in never-before-seen behavior captured for the Netflix series Our Oceans.

www.livescience.com

Our world under the waves @worldunderthewaves.bsky.social · 18d

***NEW ARTICLE OUT NOW***
Maerl, a suspiciously coral-like red seaweed with spaces in between the nodules, great for all kinds of creatures needing a place to hide and grow.

Maerl- Living Labyrinths

ourworldunderthewaves.com

Our world under the waves @worldunderthewaves.bsky.social · 19d

Media Monday #57 ✏️

The Kraken, a mythical creature usually depicted as a giant squid, was once feared by old-timey sailors.
And to protest against the practice of giant companies getting bigger by taking over smaller competitors (raising them up as part of their portfolio) or sinking them.

Our world under the waves @worldunderthewaves.bsky.social · 21d

Some bacteria live inside the guts of animals, helping them to digest unusual food stuffs. Others ensure that their hosts don’t freeze to death.

Antarctic worms’ antifreeze “superpowers” come from their microbiome

Three species of Antarctic marine worm rely on bacteria to produce antifreeze proteins

cen.acs.org

Our world under the waves @worldunderthewaves.bsky.social · 23d

Happy World Maritime Day ⚓️

Originally named “Boaty McBoatface”, the RRS Sir David Attenborough is a polar research vessel with a range of onboard facilities and instruments. Including a moon pool, a vertical shaft through which equipment can be deployed and recovered through the centre of the hull.

Our world under the waves @worldunderthewaves.bsky.social · 25d

***NEW ARTICLE COMING SOON***

Watch this space for an introduction to Maerl, a coralline red seaweed and possibly the best maze makers since David Bowie!

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Our world under the waves @worldunderthewaves.bsky.social · 26d

Media Monday #56🕹️

It’s often said that video games used to be harder than they are now, especially the water levels. But the dam level from this Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle game, with its tight time limit and unforgiving hazards, is hard enough for even the game’s co-creator to struggle.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (NES) - Water Dam

YouTube video by flamingbabygames

www.youtube.com

Our world under the waves @worldunderthewaves.bsky.social · 28d

Sawfish and sawsharks can be difficult to tell apart. But one telltale feature to look out for are the barbels on the saw (which only sawsharks have). There’s also the the position of the gill slits which, insharks generally, are always at the sides, but located underneath in rays and sawfish.

Our world under the waves @worldunderthewaves.bsky.social · 29d

Good… Good… Let the hake flow through you!

Dolphins May Not "See" With Echolocation, But Instead "Feel" With It

So when a dolphin pings you with sound, it may be feeling you up (in a non-creepy way... we hope).

www.iflscience.com

Our world under the waves @worldunderthewaves.bsky.social · Sep 17

A rather annoyed looking octopus made from ivory. Specifically called “Netsuke of Octopus”, it was made in Japan at some point during the 19th century.

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Our world under the waves @worldunderthewaves.bsky.social · Sep 15

Media Monday #55🎨

It’s not hard to guess where spider crabs get their name. These are most likely spiny spider crabs given the title of this watercolour painting “Studies of Spider Crabs, Venice”. Italy is well within the range of spiny spider crabs, but not the similar looking common spider crab.

Our world under the waves @worldunderthewaves.bsky.social · Sep 14

Bat stars will eat almost anything, scavenging on dead animals and plants as well as live prey. The status of this jellyfish prior to being swarmed is unclear, but their stinging tentacles (which can remain active for a while after death) are not doing it much good now.

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Our world under the waves @worldunderthewaves.bsky.social · Sep 12

Just because they can grow back their tails, doesn’t mean that Achoques (relatives of the popular Axolotl) are immune from human impacts. Fortunately, everyone from scientists to fishermen and indigenous communities are working to protect them and bring them back from being critically endangered.

Mexican fishermen join fight to save extraordinary amphibian

After decades working as a fisherman on a high-altitude Mexican lake, Froylan Correa is now helping to save an endangered amphibian with gills resembling a lion's mane and a remarkable regenerative ab...

phys.org

Our world under the waves @worldunderthewaves.bsky.social · Sep 10

Not all undersea caves occur naturally. Hope’s Nose off the coast of Torquay, UK is an old sewage outfall that is only exposed like this during a low spring tide.
Some of this is bare rock but look closer and you’ll see a surface encrusted by life (probably barnacles up this particular nose).

Our world under the waves @worldunderthewaves.bsky.social · Sep 8

Media Monday #54 📽️

Starring the original Star Trek cast, the entire plot of Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home revolves around the crew of the USS Enterprise travelling to the 20th century to bring back a pair of humpback whales, the only creatures capable of repelling a hostile alien probe.

Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home (1986) ⭐ 7.3 | Adventure, Comedy, Sci-Fi

1h 59m | PG