Daily Cephalopod #2

" The Pacific Sea Nettle is known for its red-brown bell, long, spiraling arms, and thin tentacles. The bell can grow to a maximum of nearly 30 inches in diameter while the trailing arms can reach 12 to 15 feet in length! "

// © Francisco Martinez

Music: Emily Watts - La Vie En Rose

Sharks are older than trees

Sharks have been munching their way through the oceans since way before the dinosaurs started munching their way across the land. when sharks first burst into the evolutionary ladder even trees had not begun to grow.

Between 485.4 and 443.8 million years ago was a time known as the Ordovician period. This was the era when sea life began to really take off, fish began to evolve in to an abundance of different species and plant began to creep their way onto the land. It is believed that towards the end of this era is when the first shark, or shark like, species began to form. The evidence for this comes in the form of a small amount of fossilised "shark like" scales that have been dated to around 450 million years old.

The next piece of early shark evidence comes in the form of the oldest shark like teeth ever found dating back to around 410 million years ago at the begin of the Devonian era. they belonged to what research describe as the least shark like shark and called Doliodus problematicus. Doliodus problematicus had a diamond shaped body and likely didn't look very shark like at all but it did have shark like teeth and a shark like skull.

Shortly after this around 390 million years ago is when the first trees started to emerge about 60 million years after the estimated date of the first shark scales. They are similar to conifers and are estimated to grow up to 50 meters tall, creating large forests in the carbon rich atmosphere of the time.

So there you have it the first sharks (or shark like creatures) could have been swimming in our seas almost 60 million years before the first forests began to grown on land. I hope you enjoyed reading and thanks for staying till the end.

Shark Dump: Lemon Sharks!

Some of you seemed to enjoy my shark facts and honestly, if I can get the chance to rave about sharks, I will. So here are some shark facts starting with my favorite, Lemon Sharks!!

If you guys enjoy this, feel free to leave me a request with the name of a shark you'd like to learn about and I'll be happy to info dump on them. I'm thinking about posting one every Sunday (Shark Sundays!!! :D )

Technically I was supposed to post this earlier but I didn't lol oops-

Conservation Status: NEAR THREATENED

This cute guy here is a Lemon shark or Negaprion brevirostris! They get this name from their yellowish skin and yellow bellies but they can be anywhere from brown to olive colored. Lemon sharks are mostly native to the Atlantic Ocean and parts of the Pacific where they occupy coral keys, mangrove forests, bays and even docks. Most populations can be found in Gulf of Mexico, the West Indies, and the Caribbean.

They can grow up to 11 ft long which makes them one of the larger species of sharks but don't let their size scare you! These guys are mostly scavengers that hunt for food near sandy in-shore areas. Most of the lemon sharks diet consists of bony fish, crustaceans and stingrays although they occasionally snack on seabirds or smaller sharks. They hunt using electroreceptors on their nose, called ampullae de Lorenzini, which help them detect fish and other creatures, even buried in the sand.

(Remember, sharks don't have hands so they rely on their nose and mouth to explore the enviroment around them!)

Lemon sharks usually live in oceanic waters that are no deeper than 188 ft although some have been found in waters at depths of up to 300 ft. They are one of 43 sharks that can swim in freshwater but usually don't travel very far into these waters as they can't survive for long periods in them. If you see a lemon shark in freshwater, they're probably just there for a quick bite to eat before heading back to the ocean.

Fun Fact: Bull sharks are the only shark that can survive in both salt and fresh water! They're also one of the dumber sharks and will try to eat anything that fits in their mouths.

Despite how scary they look, lemon sharks are actually a favorite among divers and marine biologist because of their docile behavior! They rarely attack humans (As of 2011, researchers had found only 10 cases of lemon sharks attacking humans, and none of these cases were deadly), in fact, they are very shy and usually try to avoid us. Though if they do approach, they're usually just being curious and will bump you with their nose.

But my favorite thing about lemon Sharks? Once they get over their shyness, they LOVE getting belly rubs! They find the sensation very pleasant and will actively seek out the divers who pet them, even chasing other sharks away if they feel the diver’s giving them too much attention. Sometimes, if you rub their belly too much or if you stimulate the tiny sensory pores located on their snout, you can put them into something called tonic immobility.

Tonic immobility is a reflex that causes a temporary state of inactivity in an animal. Similar to hypnosis! Researchers aren't sure why sharks do this as it's usually thought to be a prey instinct so apex predators like sharks shouldn't have this. But most researchers have found that the sharks aren't stressed when they perform this behavior so it might just mean they're really relaxed! This is backed up by the fact that when in this state the shark’s muscles relax and their breathing becomes deep and rhythmic. Sharks usually enter tonic immobility in less than a minute and they can remain in this state for up to 15 minutes. It doesn't hurt them at all and researches use this to help subdue them.

Lemon sharks (like many other sharks) are imperative to keeping our reefs alive and healthy. Without them, we've already begun to see a major decline in coral reefs and seagrass beds. By taking these sharks out of the coral reef ecosystem, there's nothing to keep the larger predatory fish in check and they overfeed on the herbivores. With less herbivores, macroalgae expands and coral can no longer compete, shifting the ecosystem to one of algae dominance causing the reefs to eventually die out.

Now, back to lemon sharks and the most important fact I have about them: their conservation status.

Lemon sharks are considered to be near threatened. This means that they are likely to become endagered in the near future. This is because they are targeted by commercial and recreational fishermen primarily due to their highly prized fins. Their meat is also in high demand and is considered a delicacy in many areas. Further, the continuing destruction of their habitat has led to the severe decline of lemon shark populations.

But thankfully, there are steps already being taken to help protect these sweet sea puppies. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission prohibits the harvesting of lemon sharks in state waters. Any lemon shark that catches onto a hook is to be released immediately, either by removal of the hook from the shark or by cutting the shark free—whichever will release the shark quickest. Some countries are also slowly starting to put in protections for them as well.

You can also help! Many people view sharks as blood-thirsty monsters due to decades of slander campaigns and hollywood scare movies (I'm glaring at you Jaws). But we can change that view by showing the world just how beautiful and intelligent these creatures really are! The more informed people are about the sharks, the more we can do to help them. Just by reading this post and learning about lemon sharks, you're helping! Now, the next time you hear someone talking smack about sharks, you can smack them with some cool shark facts! Then hopefully with enough smacking, we can change how people see these lovely predators and get more support for their protection.

Wake up babe new fish dropped

Phylum #1: Ctenophora, the comb jellies!

For quite a long time, it was believed that sponges were our most distant cousins, standing on the opposite side of the animal tree of life. Turns out it isn't the case - shiny, jelly-like creatures are the most alien of animals!

But these aren't true jellyfish, or anything close! Comb jellies don't sting, and don't have much in common with jellyfish except in appearance - in fact, they likely evolved most of their body plan completely independently!

They get their name from the rows of combs going down their body, with which they swim. These can often reflect light in unusual way, bringing a gamer vibe in the ocean depths!

Comb jellies come in a variety of shapes and sizes, not all jelly-like. Some scurry on the seafloor, while others look like huge floating ribbons. And some are even voracious predators, hunting... other comb jellies!

The Sea Creature of the Day is the Basking Shark!!!

honestly these guys... ive seen so many people say that they're afraid of them and that's completely understandable but they're just the silliest lil guys to me and i love them so much. they only feed on much smaller creatures and are entirely harmless to humans- in fact, they've been known to circle around boats but entirely avoid divers! i've always liked to imagine that they just like saying hi 🥰

even though they're massive and slightly scary looking, these guys have never been documented to directly hurt a human and are just friendly lil guys who want to eat all of the plankton they can find, and i love that for them 💜

Daily Jellyfish: Day 3

Atolla Jellyfish

Fun Facts

This species of Jellyfish uses bioluminescent defense technique in which it launch several bright flashes as its being attacked in hopes to attract a larger predator interested in its attacker more then itself.

For the previously said reason, this jellyfish has earned the title of the alarm Jellyfish.

They are considered deep sea creatures, living between 1000m to 4000m in depth around the globe.

Daily fish fact #478

Great white shark!

They take part in behaviour known as spyhopping, in which a great white will peek its head above water to view its surroundings! Oh, and speaking of viewing, great white sharks have a blue iris, which is very cool indeed!

So true bestie what did you say btw i was dissociating

HI idk if any of these r repeats (sorry if they are😖😖) but id love 2 see facts abt panther groupers!! gars are also rlly fun imo any kind and i also love sturgeons..... if u have any fun facts abt the differences between types of sturgeons i would rlly love 2 hear !!!! sorry again if this isnt the kind of stuff u wanted 2 hear omg . love ur blog keep it up💕💕💕💕💕‼️

Thank you for your kind words friend! Of course I'm happy to provide! :DD I do repeats all the time so it's completely fine, and even then I have not done panther groupers yet! So...

Daily fish fact #570

Panther grouper!

Juvenile panther groupers are pure white with black spots, but as they age they gain splotches of beige and grey! They're also called humpback groupers because of their distinct hunched form.

And there you have it! I shall do gars and perhaps a sturgeon next! Differences between sturgeon species, I'm not so sure about... they all vary from each other in different ways, like distribution, body shape, colouration, snout length and shape, and so on! My good buddy @sturgeonposting has several informational posts about sturgeons, so be sure to check them out if you want to see many facts!