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Does wildlife get wilder?
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Cod grounds marine park

Dive buddy/model @german_andres_soler
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#worldwildlifeday
@reeflifesurvey
#marinelife #conservation #underwater #wildlife @featured_wildlife @visitnsw @natgeoau @natgeo @pewenvironment #shark #marinepark @ausmarineparks

After watching huge schools of large herbivorous fishes roving along our survey transects in the Galapagos, I was thinking about the incredible algal productivity. But the marine iguanas made me see it differently. They aren't as efficient as herbivorous fishes at cropping the algae super low, and only have a short window in the day to feed (between warming up in the sun on the rocks). I could just imagine if it was me, I'd not be able to sleep - I'd be thinking about all the fishes eating my algae (the worst kind of FOMO - FOMOOF!) and when I was warm enough, needing to rush to find patches that hadn't been cropped too short!
Thanks to @inti.keith and team from the @charlesdarwinfoundation and @reeflifesurvey
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#galapagos #iguanas #marinelife #reef #marinebiology

After watching huge schools of large herbivorous fishes roving along our survey transects in the Galapagos, I was thinking about the incredible algal productivity. But the marine iguanas made me see it differently. They aren't as efficient as herbivorous fishes at cropping the algae super low, and only have a short window in the day to feed (between warming up in the sun on the rocks). I could just imagine if it was me, I'd not be able to sleep - I'd be thinking about all the fishes eating my algae (the worst kind of FOMO - FOMOOF!) and when I was warm enough, needing to rush to find patches that hadn't been cropped too short!
Thanks to @inti.keith and team from the @charlesdarwinfoundation and @reeflifesurvey
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#galapagos #iguanas #marinelife #reef #marinebiology

After watching huge schools of large herbivorous fishes roving along our survey transects in the Galapagos, I was thinking about the incredible algal productivity. But the marine iguanas made me see it differently. They aren't as efficient as herbivorous fishes at cropping the algae super low, and only have a short window in the day to feed (between warming up in the sun on the rocks). I could just imagine if it was me, I'd not be able to sleep - I'd be thinking about all the fishes eating my algae (the worst kind of FOMO - FOMOOF!) and when I was warm enough, needing to rush to find patches that hadn't been cropped too short!
Thanks to @inti.keith and team from the @charlesdarwinfoundation and @reeflifesurvey
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#galapagos #iguanas #marinelife #reef #marinebiology

After watching huge schools of large herbivorous fishes roving along our survey transects in the Galapagos, I was thinking about the incredible algal productivity. But the marine iguanas made me see it differently. They aren't as efficient as herbivorous fishes at cropping the algae super low, and only have a short window in the day to feed (between warming up in the sun on the rocks). I could just imagine if it was me, I'd not be able to sleep - I'd be thinking about all the fishes eating my algae (the worst kind of FOMO - FOMOOF!) and when I was warm enough, needing to rush to find patches that hadn't been cropped too short!
Thanks to @inti.keith and team from the @charlesdarwinfoundation and @reeflifesurvey
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#galapagos #iguanas #marinelife #reef #marinebiology

Even better than I had imagined. What character. They hold their place amongst the fishes.

Would you care if all of this was bare rock in 10-20yrs?

Some of my favourite places in the world - deeper reefs of Tasmania - are changing for the worse before my eyes.

Climate change may be chipping in, but it ultimately comes down us taking too many lobsters. They used to keep the sea urchins in check, and now the urchins are eating this pretty habitat out quicker than they're eating the kelp in the shallows.

Likewise, we've taken out all the big fish. Encounters with big striped trumpeter have become rarer than lobsters.

This is like converting the amazon to farmland, but not many people know how beautiful it is, let alone that it was a choice to lose it.

A recent survey mission to Flores gave us some interesting species, lots of colour, sunshine and blue water. Not sure I counted a single fish over 20cm, but the corals were in good shape!

A beautiful turrum (Carangoides fulvoguttatus) pulled in at the cleaning station for a pit stop.
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#ningalooreef #trevally #jack #goldspot #cleaninghacks #cleaningmotivation #fishoftheday #wildlife #underwater #scubadiving #marinebiology #reeflife #coralbay #westernaustralia

Some very pretty reef habitats and beautiful seaweeds on our surveys in the St Abbs area.
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#kelpforest #stabbs #scotland #reeflife #biodiversity #seaweeds #kelp #marinelife #scubadiving #underwater #landscapeart

Some very pretty reef habitats and beautiful seaweeds on our surveys in the St Abbs area.
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#kelpforest #stabbs #scotland #reeflife #biodiversity #seaweeds #kelp #marinelife #scubadiving #underwater #landscapeart

Some very pretty reef habitats and beautiful seaweeds on our surveys in the St Abbs area.
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#kelpforest #stabbs #scotland #reeflife #biodiversity #seaweeds #kelp #marinelife #scubadiving #underwater #landscapeart

Some very pretty reef habitats and beautiful seaweeds on our surveys in the St Abbs area.
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#kelpforest #stabbs #scotland #reeflife #biodiversity #seaweeds #kelp #marinelife #scubadiving #underwater #landscapeart

Some very pretty reef habitats and beautiful seaweeds on our surveys in the St Abbs area.
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#kelpforest #stabbs #scotland #reeflife #biodiversity #seaweeds #kelp #marinelife #scubadiving #underwater #landscapeart

Some very pretty reef habitats and beautiful seaweeds on our surveys in the St Abbs area.
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#kelpforest #stabbs #scotland #reeflife #biodiversity #seaweeds #kelp #marinelife #scubadiving #underwater #landscapeart

Scottish reef vibes. Some enjoyable surveys in some beautiful kelp forests.
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#kelpforest #reef #reeflife #scotland #biodiversity #underwater #marinebiology #seaweed #kelp #scubadiving #wildlife #ocean

I naively thought that Atlantic Cod - the most famous fish to ever swim the seas - must have historically been a small-time player in shallow coastal reef ecosystems (& that they played their main ecological role in the deeper offshore waters where the fishery was enormous).
Watching medium and largish cod actively feeding in the kelp forest in Norway, seeking out any invertebrates they could find, was an eye opener. Not ever having had a chance to see many cod before, because they are very rare in most places these days - I had been caught out by a serious case of shifting baselines. I now can't imagine how they were not THE key player on shallow rocky reefs of the North Atlantic until they were fished out long ago.

If you are unfamiliar with their story, the book 'Cod' by Mark Kurlansky is a super interesting read.
And try seeking out a dive in a protected area in the far north, where a small number of these incredible fish can still be seen doing their thing.....
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#shiftingbaselines #cod #marineprotectedarea #mpa #fisheries #history #marineecology #naturalhistory #scubadiving #underwater #kelpforest #temperate #reef #fishoftheday

I naively thought that Atlantic Cod - the most famous fish to ever swim the seas - must have historically been a small-time player in shallow coastal reef ecosystems (& that they played their main ecological role in the deeper offshore waters where the fishery was enormous).
Watching medium and largish cod actively feeding in the kelp forest in Norway, seeking out any invertebrates they could find, was an eye opener. Not ever having had a chance to see many cod before, because they are very rare in most places these days - I had been caught out by a serious case of shifting baselines. I now can't imagine how they were not THE key player on shallow rocky reefs of the North Atlantic until they were fished out long ago.

If you are unfamiliar with their story, the book 'Cod' by Mark Kurlansky is a super interesting read.
And try seeking out a dive in a protected area in the far north, where a small number of these incredible fish can still be seen doing their thing.....
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#shiftingbaselines #cod #marineprotectedarea #mpa #fisheries #history #marineecology #naturalhistory #scubadiving #underwater #kelpforest #temperate #reef #fishoftheday

I naively thought that Atlantic Cod - the most famous fish to ever swim the seas - must have historically been a small-time player in shallow coastal reef ecosystems (& that they played their main ecological role in the deeper offshore waters where the fishery was enormous).
Watching medium and largish cod actively feeding in the kelp forest in Norway, seeking out any invertebrates they could find, was an eye opener. Not ever having had a chance to see many cod before, because they are very rare in most places these days - I had been caught out by a serious case of shifting baselines. I now can't imagine how they were not THE key player on shallow rocky reefs of the North Atlantic until they were fished out long ago.

If you are unfamiliar with their story, the book 'Cod' by Mark Kurlansky is a super interesting read.
And try seeking out a dive in a protected area in the far north, where a small number of these incredible fish can still be seen doing their thing.....
.
.
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#shiftingbaselines #cod #marineprotectedarea #mpa #fisheries #history #marineecology #naturalhistory #scubadiving #underwater #kelpforest #temperate #reef #fishoftheday

I naively thought that Atlantic Cod - the most famous fish to ever swim the seas - must have historically been a small-time player in shallow coastal reef ecosystems (& that they played their main ecological role in the deeper offshore waters where the fishery was enormous).
Watching medium and largish cod actively feeding in the kelp forest in Norway, seeking out any invertebrates they could find, was an eye opener. Not ever having had a chance to see many cod before, because they are very rare in most places these days - I had been caught out by a serious case of shifting baselines. I now can't imagine how they were not THE key player on shallow rocky reefs of the North Atlantic until they were fished out long ago.

If you are unfamiliar with their story, the book 'Cod' by Mark Kurlansky is a super interesting read.
And try seeking out a dive in a protected area in the far north, where a small number of these incredible fish can still be seen doing their thing.....
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.
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#shiftingbaselines #cod #marineprotectedarea #mpa #fisheries #history #marineecology #naturalhistory #scubadiving #underwater #kelpforest #temperate #reef #fishoftheday

Lump! Perhaps nothing special for those in Europe or Canada, but the lumpfish is one of those 'beautiful in it's own way' species I have always wanted to see. This one has a nice collection of parasitic copepods and no doubt has many interesting stories to tell of the North Atlantic. Thanks @_lizoh_for finding this on our survey at St Abbs.
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#lumpfish #scotland #stabbs #reef #biodiversity #marinebiology #fishoftheday #reeffish #kelpforest #marinelife #beautyisintheeyeofthebeholder

Lump! Perhaps nothing special for those in Europe or Canada, but the lumpfish is one of those 'beautiful in it's own way' species I have always wanted to see. This one has a nice collection of parasitic copepods and no doubt has many interesting stories to tell of the North Atlantic. Thanks @_lizoh_for finding this on our survey at St Abbs.
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#lumpfish #scotland #stabbs #reef #biodiversity #marinebiology #fishoftheday #reeffish #kelpforest #marinelife #beautyisintheeyeofthebeholder

Lump! Perhaps nothing special for those in Europe or Canada, but the lumpfish is one of those 'beautiful in it's own way' species I have always wanted to see. This one has a nice collection of parasitic copepods and no doubt has many interesting stories to tell of the North Atlantic. Thanks @_lizoh_for finding this on our survey at St Abbs.
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#lumpfish #scotland #stabbs #reef #biodiversity #marinebiology #fishoftheday #reeffish #kelpforest #marinelife #beautyisintheeyeofthebeholder

A taste of our little Norway survey mission. A few more fish than I was expecting - it was truly Cod's country. And a huge wolf fish was a real highlight!
Big thanks to Cesc, Nord & Ne, Mark Costello for helping facilitate.

#cod #norway #scubadiving #reef #kelpforest #fishoftheday #marinebiology

❄️Who knew fieldwork could look this good!

Reef Life Survey has teamed up with Aurora Expeditions and the University of Tasmania to expand global reef surveys to the frozen continent for the first time in over a decade 👏

🔗Read more about this survey mission at ReefLifeSurvey.com/blog

🎥 Footage by Rick Stuart-Smith (@mostly__fish)
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#antarctica #scubadiving #marinescience #scuba #marinebiology