Nudibranchs, fighting sponges and other works of art Nudibranchs, fighting sponges and other works of art

Our expedition team is back from the Three Kings Islands and ready to answer your questions about what they found and to show you some of the specimens they collected to help build their understanding of the marine environment. The blog has been a fantastic chance to follow their discoveries but now you can meet them face to face and talk to them about their preliminary findings about marine life in the Three Kings. In the few days since the team got back on dry land they've already identified that one of the fish they found is likely to be a new species. So who knows what tomorrow will bring. You can meet four of the team - including University of Queensland PhD student Libby Liggins and one of the expedition's photographers Richard Robinson - tomorrow at 11am at the Auckland Museum. There are some more details of the session below and we've also got some more underwater footagREAD MORE...

Finding tiny treasures is one of Skip’s well-honed skills. Between us all we’ve seen nine different kinds of nudibranchs, and here are Skip’s photos of two of them. Nudibranchs are a kind of mollusc – snails and slugs are molluscs, too, and nudibranchs are often called seaslugs, which seems a very ugly name for a very pretty creature! Nudibranch means feathered gills, and you can see the circle of gills in the middle of the back of the white nudibranch, which goes by the name Trapania rudmani.

A white nudibranch (Trapania rudmani) or 'seaslug' - but it's an ugly name for such a beautiful creature — A white nudibranch (Trapania rudmani) or ‘seaslug’ – but it’s an ugly name for such a beautiful creature

The photos make them seem quite big but thing about them is they are really small – and it takes good eyes to find them, and a really good macro lens to take photos like this. Different kinds of nudibranchs are specialised to feed and live on different organisms. These yellow ones live only on this hydroid, and they’re coloured to match it and blend in. Can you see that there are two nudibranchs in this picture, and also a yellow mass of eggs? It belongs to a genus called Doto, but we don’t know which species it is.

Can you see that there are two nudibranchs in this picture? There's also a yellow mass of eggs but they are coloured to match their surroundings. — Can you see that there are two nudibranchs in this picture? There’s also a yellow mass of eggs but they’re coloured to match their surroundings.

As you can see Skip is an expert at photographing big close-ups of very small things, and here are some other shots he’s taken on the trip so far. This looks like abstract art but it’s really a photo of outright warfare. The two colours are two different sponges, and the battle zone is where they meet. Because space is at such a premium here they try and grow over the top of each other – and it’s clearly a close fight!

It's war: it might look like the latest in modern art but this is actually a photo of sea sponges battling for space. — It’s war: it might look like the latest in modern art but this is actually a photo of sea sponges battling for space.

This lovely moss-like thing is actually a seaweed. It goes by the long name of Perisporochnus regalis, and there is only one species in the genus and it is only found here at the Three Kings Islands. Even Wendy, our seaweed expert, says it doesn’t really look much like a seaweed!

This seaweed (Perisporochnus regalis) is unique to the Three Kings - and it's definitely not your average looking seaweed. — This seaweed (Perisporochnus regalis) is unique to the Three Kings – and it’s definitely not your average looking seaweed.

And here’s another gorgeous seaweed – its genus name Geminata says it all, as it really looks like gems strung on a necklace. Wendy says it is nice to eat, and tastes like peppery cucumber.

Geminata - so named because it looks like a string of gems on a necklace. Something you can't tell from looking is that it apparently tastes like peppery cucumber. — Geminata – so named because it looks like a string of gems on a necklace. Something you can’t tell from looking is that it apparently tastes like peppery cucumber.

And here’s a lovely close-up of a couple of gorgonian fans. They are related to corals and anemones, and they hang on the underside of overhangs where the individual polyps stick out their tentacles and grab particles of food passing in the current. Skip was photographing them in the first underwater video we posted from the Three Kings.

Gorgonian fans - these tentacles aren't just for looks they're used to grab particles of food passing in the current. — Gorgonian fans – these tentacles aren’t just for looks they’re used to grab particles of food passing in the current.

Tonight we’ll show you some tricks with lights – turn them on and watch what comes swimming our way … (We’ll have video and photos so I suggest coming back for a look!)

2 Responses to “Nudibranchs, fighting sponges and other works of art”

Darryl Torckler
April 13, 2013
Great pictures, love the orange & yellow sponge shot, so graphic like an artist has painted it.
Helen Kettles
April 15, 2013
Enjoying following the blogs. Love that cute little yellow and red nudibranch. Great wildlife, great photos. Thank you.