Snails In The Genus Julia have A Bivalved Shell, Like A Clam!

Fast Fauna Facts #3 - Winged Argonaut (Argonauta hians)

Family: Argonaut Family (Argonautidae)

IUCN Conservation Status: Least Concern

Like the other small octopuses in the argonaut family many Winged Argonauts appear to have spiral-shaped external shells similar to those of nautiluses or ammonites, but this isn't quite the case - what appears to be an argonaut's shell is only seen in adult females, and is actually a thin-walled, calcium-based case secreted from and held by a specialised pair of arms in order to carry fertilized eggs until they hatch. Found in non-polar waters worldwide, Winged Argonauts are found mainly near the surface in the open ocean (in contrast to most octopuses, which are bottom-dwellers,) feeding on small floating invertebrates and often using their suction cups to cling to flotsam or larger animals (sometimes including other argonauts) for protection; when faced with a predator, they may attempt to position the animal they're riding on between them and the perceived threat to act as a meat shield.

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Photinus fireflies are probably one of North America’s most iconic and beloved beetles, and rightfully so. P. pyralis is big and bright, with a yellow-green color to its bioluminescence

I also often see these smaller Photinus with a warm orange glow. I think they could be P. scintillans, which aligns with their size, flash pattern, the yellow sclerites on males, and where I’m located. females of that species are short-winged and flightless, so I’ll try to find one to figure out the ID for sure.

reminder that fireflies eat slugs and snails as larvae! if you like seeing them in your garden, stop trying to exterminate land gastropods and leave some vegetation where the adults can sleep during the day. slugs and “weeds” = more magic glowing bugs

どれが本物だ♡

phys.org

Remarkable new plant species steals nutrients from underground fungi

A distinctive plant that steals nutrients from underground fungi has been discovered as a new species by botanists from the Forest Research

A distinctive plant that steals nutrients from underground fungi has been discovered as a new species by botanists from the Forest Research Institute Malaysia (FRIM) in collaboration with local naturalists and stakeholders. The research is published in the journal PhytoKeys. Discovered in the tropical rainforests of Peninsular Malaysia, Thismia malayana belongs to a group of plants known as mycoheterotrophs. Unlike most plants, mycoheterotrophs do not perform photosynthesis. Instead, they act as a parasite, stealing carbon resources from the fungi on their roots. This adaptation takes advantage of the mycorrhizal symbiosis, which is usually a mutually beneficial relationship between colonizing fungi and a plant's root system.

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literally me

A rescued pelican in the backseat.

Deep Sea Brotula

During a dive to the Galapagos Rift Zone in 1988, scientists in Alvin saw this strange purple fish hanging out in the super-hot water gushing from hydrothermal vents at about 8,200 feet (2500 meters) depth. Pilot Ralph Hollis quickly netted the fish and brought it back to the surface for further examination. Scientists determined that it was in the genus Bythites, of which there are three Atlantic species, and promptly named it after Hollis: Bythites hollisi. They also found that it produces live young (as opposed to eggs) and is a relative of the better-known cusk eel. By 2002, more of these fish had been caught, and scientists decided that this Equatorial Eastern Pacific specimen was so different from the three Atlantic species that it warranted a new genus, Gerhardia. But a few years later, scientists wishing to avoid confusion with a beetle with the same moniker proposed another name, Thermichthys hollisi, referring to the fish’s preferred hangout, the hydrothermal vents of the Galapagos Rift Zone. So far, no other fish of this genus have been found.

via: Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI)

Wake up babe new fish dropped

@confidently-regretful

(Sorry to be that guy but) the leaf sheep is not actually a nudibranch, but instead part of the closely related order sacoglossa. Nudibranches are carnivorous while sacoglossa are herbivorous and feed by sucking the sap out of microscopic algae. Many sacoglossa perform a process called kleptoplasty, where they reuse chloroplasts from the algal sap they feed on and implement them into their cells. Some notable examples are the bivalve snails in the family juliidae, the eastern emerald elysia (elysia chlorotica) and obviously the sea sheep. Another slug from the order elysia (elysia rufescens) reuses defensive molecules called kahalalides as well as chloroplasts. Most sacoglossans survive primarily through heterotrophic means (ingesting and digesting) and photosynthesise when food is scarce or unavailable as a last resort. Though research has shown leaf sheep can survive long periods of time with little to no food of heterotrophic or homotrophic (photosynthetic) origin. They store their chloroplasts in cerata, which are structures often found on nudibranches and regularly used for gas exchange or- in blue glaucus’ case- for attack and defence. They also have rhinophores protruding from their face, structures also commonly found on nudibranches, which are chemosensory organs (essentially face tongues) that appear ear like on nudibranches and sacoglossans alike.

To conclude: while leaf sheep are very similar to nudibranches, they belong to the sacoglossan family (which is good because sacoglossans are just as cool) and luckily are not the only animals to photosynthesise.

(I’m researching them for a highschool project and am so obsessed haha)

So not technically a fish but I absolutely love these lil fellas

They’re Nudibranch sea slugs and they all look so pretty!!!!!

Some notable exception are the Sea Bunny (left) which is just the most adorable thing I’ve ever seen

And the Leaf Sheep (right), which is the only animal known to be capable of photosynthesis!

i am SUCH a nudibranch fan oh my god. actual underwater fae creatures. beloved little freak animals. i want to eat them like cereal