Red Lionfish [Watery Wednesday]

@ mirandablue

A family of red lionfish (Pterois volitans) gliding gracefully at the Georgia Aquarium.  They are beautifully banded and fascinating to watch.  But these attractive creatures are venomous, and although their stings are not deadly, the venom inflicts extreme pain.  Lionfish is a nocturnal coral reef fish native to the Indo-Pacific oceanic region.  They have 13 poisonous dorsal spines that are used purely for defense, and 14 long, feather-like pectoral rays.  They feed mostly on crustaceans and small fishes, which include juveniles of their own species.  While courting, males are particularly aggressive to intruders but are not usually aggressive towards humans.

@ mirandablue

Lionfish is not currently listed as threatened or endangered.  However, the increase in pollution in coral reefs is expected to kill many of the fish and crustaceans, which lionfish depend on.  (Source:  Animal Diversity Web)

@ mirandablue

Posted for Watery Wednesday

Swimming with piranhas [Watery Wednesday]

@ mirandablue

These were taken at the Georgia Aquarium in Atlanta in August 2009.  I wasn't able to post most of my aquarium shots because I lost misplaced the USB where I saved my photos and found it around Christmas while rummaging through a box of gift tags and ribbons.  

Visiting the Georgia Aquarium was the most interesting day I spent in Atlanta.  It's the world's largest aquarium and I have never seen anything like it.  I believe these were at the River Scout gallery where a wide variety of animals found in the rivers of Africa, South America and Asia were assembled.  The themed environment  was beautifully designed, and I got the appreciation of fresh water creatures, even the deadly and venomous. 

@ mirandablue

This post is linked to Watery Wednesday

A beluga experience [WW and OW]

They are called "canaries of the sea" due to their high-pitched twitter. Beluga whales are gregarious marine mammals that are entirely found in arctic and sub-arctic waters. It was my first time to see beluga whales up close and personal, and they were playful and magnificently swimming around the Coldwater Quest gallery of the Georgia Aquarium.

These white whales were approximately 12 feet long, and they live at Georgia Aquarium's state-of-the-art 800,000 gallon beluga whale habitat that simulates their natural environment and maintained at 13 degrees Celsius.

Sad news though, I read in Georgia Aquarium's website that Nico, a 25-year old male and one of the whales in these photos, died unexpectedly on October 31st.

Posted for Watery Wednesday and Outdoor Wednesday

Words - Photo Hunt

 These words were found at the Pacific War Memorial in Corregidor Island.  Corregidor is an island in Manila Bay that served as a focal point of naval defenses during the World War II.  It is a significant historic and tourist site.  More about Corregidor here and here.

Inscribed on a bench at the Georgia Aquarium are these  words:

History is written by those who make the wake 

not by those who ride on it 

nor those who watch safely from the shore.

~ inspired by Billi and Bernie Marcus

Photo Hunt is hosted by TN Chick

Photo-Hunt: twisted

A snake twisted around a tree branch at the Georgia Aquarium.

In the West, snakes are perceived to be deceitful, crafty and evil creatures.  After all, the Biblical story of the fall of man was caused by a snake.  In some cultures, snakes are fertility symbols, they symbolize the umbilical cord joining all humans to Mother Earth, while some worshiped this reptile as guardians of mysteries of birth and regeneration.  Snakes are also associated with wisdom, perhaps due to their behavior and facial features (e.g. unblinking, lidless eyes) that seemed to imply that they are intelligent, that they plan their actions as they prepare to strike, and that they live by reason and not by instinct.

Posted for Photo Hunt

Photo-Hunt: Orange

I was amazed the first time I saw a Japanese Spider Crab at the Manila Ocean Park's Oceanarium---I never thought crabs could grow so big. The orange body of this spider crab is about the size of a child's head. I encountered these gentle giants the second time around when I visited the Cold Water Quest Gallery of the Georgia Aquarium in Atlanta last August.

These giant crabs live on the seafloor of the Pacific Ocean near the Japanese archipelago, at the depths of 150 to 1000 feet where it is very dark and cold which makes them difficult to capture. It is believed that they can live as long as 100 years. This crab is a scavenger that feeds on dead animal and plant materials. Its small, pointed claws can also pry open shells of mollusks. An adult Japanese spider crab can grow up to 12 feet across (with legs spread out) and its body at 15 inches wide, the largest living arthropod (group of animals that includes crabs, shrimps, insects and spiders). After molting, the crab will consume its former shell in order to recover important nutrients. (Sources: Georgia Aquarium and Wikipedia)

Photo-Hunt is hosted by TNChick