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Marty’s photo of the day #4966: The Galapagos penguins are squawking that I haven’t featured them for a photo of the day yet. So here we go. These are the rarest penguins in the world (less than 2,000 exist) and the only penguin species that lives in the tropics and north of the equator. To […]
Marty’s photo of the day #4963: During the past ten years, I’ve snorkeled the Sea of Cortez, Bonaire, Belize, the Raja Ampat of Indonesian New Guinea, and the Galapagos Islands. All had interesting and unique features. Where the Galapagos Islands excelled was in the massive schools of fish that were close enough to touch. These […]
Marty’s photo of the day #4962: Annie: “Now, I want you to breathe through your eyelids.” Nuke: “My eyelids?” Annie: “Yeah, like the lava lizards of the Galapagos Islands. See, there are some lizards that have a parietal eye behind their heads so they can see backwards. Haven’t you ever noticed how Fernando Valenzuela, he […]
Marty’s photo of the day #4961: So, I shot green sea turtle porn while visiting the Galapagos Islands. Copulation can take several hours, with the female supporting the male’s weight and swimming to the surface for air. She’ll mate with multiple males over a two-week period and store their sperm for several months to fertilize […]
Marty’s photo of the day #4960: When it comes to underwater photography, one advantage the Galapagos Islands has over locations with coral reefs is that its lack of coral entices many interesting and colorful fish to hang out among the volcanic rocks near the surface. That advantage allowed me to get very close to this […]
Marty’s photo of the day #4959: Deb and I spent the night in a treehouse along the migration route of the Galapagos tortoises (also known as giant tortoises) on Santa Cruz island. Their migration from the humid highlands to the dry lowlands is only about five miles, but that’s quite a feat for these huge […]
Eventually I will get to more spectacular underwater photos, but I think this shot demonstrates the difference between what I had been posting previously from the Raja Ampat of Indonesian New Guinea and what I will be posting in the coming weeks from the Galapagos Islands. The Raja Ampat has incredible coral reefs that the […]
Marty’s photo of the day #4958: You are looking at Christmas tree marine iguanas (also known as Española marine iguanas) making more Christmas tree marine iguanas. These lizards are a subspecies found only on Española island. While most marine iguanas are black to absorb sun heat, the males on Española turn brilliant red and green […]
Marty’s photo of the day #4957: This is a fledgling Galapagos albatross (also known as a waved albatross). When full-grown, these critically endangered birds have a wingspan of up to eight feet. And they look a lot prettier, too! This albatross isn’t yet ready to fly, but when it does, it will stay at sea […]
Marty’s photo of the day #4954: These are feather stars. Despite their plant-like appearance, they are a free-swimming animals related to sea stars and sea urchins. They use their feathery arms to filter food from ocean currents and can crawl or swim by undulating their arms. (Photographed in the Raja Ampat of Indonesian New Guinea.)
Marty’s photo of the day #4952: This is a longfin emperor. These fish can shift their coloration from a pale to dark depending on their mood. They also start out as female before becoming male. (Photographed in the Raja Ampat of Indonesian New Guinea.)
Marty’s photo of the day #4949: Golden spadefish undergo significant physical changes as they age. Juveniles have long, crescent-shaped dorsal and anal fins, while adults have shorter, rounded fins and a spade-like body. An interesting behavior is that juveniles sometimes float sideways, mimicking dead leaves, to hide from predators. Adults, like the one in this […]
Marty’s photo of the day #4948: This is a flagtail triggerfish. There are about 40 species of triggerfish. They get their name because they can lock their main dorsal spine into an upright position using a second, smaller spine, allowing them to wedge themselves into tight, rocky crevices to prevent predators from pulling them out. […]
Marty’s photo of the day #4932: This is a coconut crab. Listed as a vulnerable species by the IUCN, they are the largest terrestrial arthropods on Earth, reaching a weight of nine pounds. One wild theory for why Amelia Earhart’s body was never found was because it was dragged away and eaten by coconut crabs. […]
Marty’s photo of the day #4931: While visiting the Raja Ampat, Deb and I saw multiple species of rabbitfish. The ones in this photo are masked rabbitfish, and, like all rabbitfish, they possess venomous spines in their dorsal, anal, and pelvic fins. The venom is painful to humans, but not deadly. Rabbitfish are shy herbivorous […]
While in the Raja Ampat of Indonesian New Guinea, I often explored crevices in the volcanic rock formations along the ocean shore. My usual finds were colorful crabs and lizards, but I also found this sea krait (a venomous snake with a paddle-shaped tail). Sea kraits must leave the water to digest their meals, so […]
Marty’s photo of the day #4910: For yesterday’s photo of the day, I featured a bluespotted grouper that produced the illusion of bioluminescence. Today’s photo is even more extreme. These redfin butterflyfish appeared to be bioluminescent near their pectoral fins. But again, it’s an illusion. Instead, they have fluorescent pigments in their skin that absorb […]
Marty’s photo of the day #4772: Deb and I spent time in Spain while working on the Europe section of my first book, Cool Creatures, Hot Planet: Exploring the Seven Continents. This is Castillo de Albuquerque, which we discovered by accident while traveling the rural back roads. I’m now reading The Last Queen, the second […]
Marty’s photo of the day #4512: Bonaire is part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, and in 1850 the Dutch West Indies Company built slave huts for slaves working in its four salt pans. My wife, Deb, is standing next to some of the slave huts that have been preserved. The slaves would use these […]
Marty’s photo of the day #4510: With all the colorful fish on the reef surrounding Bonaire, it’s easy to overlook the fish that would rather not be seen. I spotted one such fish—a sand diver—just a short distance out from shore. How tough are sand divers to spot? Below the main photo I’ve added a […]
