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Have a ball, a mantis shrimp ball.





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Posted by Merry on October 07, 2013 at 10:15:39:

Elusive, aggressive, and solitary, the stomatopod Hemisquilla ensigera californiensis is usually spotted while peaking its head out of a sandy burrow. Yesterday, I found this one in what appears to be in a defensive position. My guess is that either we clipped it with our anchor chain or it had been in a tussle with another mantis shrimp. You can easily find them in the sandy plains off the old Marineland site (now Terranea Resort), and the openings of their burrows are usually lined with shells.

Mantis shrimp ball photo Mantisshrimp800DSC_2217_zpsf053b0a2.jpg

Mantis shrimp uncurling photo Mantisshrimp800DSC_2218_zps647cfa33.jpg


Image taken from an article by Marc Srour:
Telson curl photo telsoncurl_zps80260a3d.jpg


Mantis shrimp close photo Mantisshrimp800DSC_2229_zps34e81872.jpg

Mantis shrimp photo Mantisshrimp800cDSC_2224_zps8f94a37c.jpg


After all this excitement, we motored to Honeymoon Cove to enjoy flat calm seas for a change. Phil found another little reef for us to explore, and I fooled around with camera settings.

Kelp & senoritas photo KelpMPsreefbDSC_2274_zpsaf53e1dd.jpg

 photo KelpMPsreefbDSC_2275_zps689a6405.jpg


In Honeymoon cove, many of the Norris topsnails are bottom-heavy with fouling organisms: barnacles, worms, tunicates, encrusting algae.

Topsnail bottom-heavy photo TopsnailbottomheavycrDSC_2278_zps79919851.jpg

 photo topsnailbottomheavyDSC_2205_zps0043a544.jpg


This is the first time either of us have seen a white-spotted rose anemone outside the Northern Channel Islands. Urticina lofotensis

White-spotted rose anemone photo White-spottedroseanemoneDSC_2147_zps7178e218.jpg

 photo Worm690DSC_2187_zps82106b04.jpg


Felimare porterae and Flabellina trilineata
Felimare porterae photo Felimareporterae690DSC_2176_zpsa90c6407.jpg


Cuthona divae on hydroids
 photo Cuthonadivaeamphydroids800DSC_2168_zps1c2d580f.jpg


Unlike the other reef we dive at this spot, kelp rockfish predominate.
2 Kelp rockfishes photo 2kelprockfish800DSC_2260_zps27d335de.jpg

 photo Kelprockfish800DSC_2148_zps956a5de7.jpg




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