Fishy Facts Page 1
Blue Devil Fish
Paraplesiops Bleekeri
Eastern blue devil fish, Paraplesiops bleekeri, are a shy, secretive fish found in caves, crevices and under ledges on inshore reefs and estuaries. They occur in shallow waters in estuaries as well as in deep waters offshore ranging from 3 to 30 metres. Eastern blue devil fish are distributed from southern Queensland to the NSW south coast. Eastern blue devil fish are protected due to their natural rarity and low abundance.
Eastern blue devil fish are solitary creatures that usually live alone in caves, crevices or under ledges during the day. Usually they appear shy to divers, as they do not swim away fleeing when discovered, but tend to move to the very back of a cave or crevice to remain out of site. They are most active at night. Little is known about their diet but they are known to feed on brittle stars.
Males are thought to defend a territory in a cave or overhang in order to attract a mate and will drive other males away. The breeding season for Eastern blue devil fish is between the months of October and March. They lay groups of eggs glued to the underside of caves or ledges until they hatch. Free-swimming larvae, approximately 4 mm long, hatch from the eggs, and settle around reef areas when they have grown to about 10 mm. When fully grown they can grow to 40 cm in length.
Nudibranchs
Nudibranchs are marine snails that have no shell (or in which the shell is significantly reduced). The largest species of nudibranchs grow to 40 cm, the smallest are easily able to move through grains of sand. Most are smaller than 10 cm. There are more than 3,000 known species of nudibranch, and new ones are being identified almost daily.
'Nudibranch' means 'naked gills' because their gills are on the rear of the back of some species or along the side.
Most nudibranchs have a file-like organ (radula) which is only found in molluscs and is used to scrape off their food. This organ is covered on top with rows of teeth. They are carnivores that slowly ply their range grazing on algae, sponges, anemones, corals, barnacles, and even other nudibranchs. To identify prey, they have two highly sensitive tentacles, called rhinophores, located on top of their heads. Nudibranchs derive their coloring from the food they eat, which helps in camouflage, and some even retain the foul-tasting poisons of their prey and secrete them as a defense against predators.
Nudibranchs are simultaneous hermaphrodites, and can mate with any other mature member of their species. Their lifespan varies widely, with some living less than a month, and others living up to one year.
Wobbegong Sharks
Wobbegong is the common name given to the eight species of carpet sharks in the family Orectolobidae. The word wobbegong is believed to come from an Australian Aboriginal language, meaning "shaggy beard". They are found in shallow temperate and tropical waters of the western Pacific Ocean and eastern Indian Ocean, chiefly around Australia and Indonesia.
Wobbegongs are bottom-dwelling sharks which spend much of their time resting on the sea floor, often among rocks or under ledges. The largest species, the spotted wobbegong, Orectolobus maculatus, grows up to 3.2 m long. Wobbegongs are well camouflaged with a symmetrical pattern of bold markings which resembles carpet. Wobbegongs make use of their relative invisibility to hide among rocks and catch smaller fish which swim too close, typical of ambush predators. Wobbegongs are largely nocturnal. Due to their low metabolisms, wobbegong species are not fed as often as other sharks and most do well on two feedings weekly.
Wobbegongs are generally not dangerous unless they are provoked. They have bitten people who accidentally step on them in shallow water; they may also bite scuba divers or snorkellers who poke or handle them, or who block their escape route. Wobbegongs are very flexible and can easily bite a hand that is holding on to their tail. They have many small but sharp teeth and their bite can be severe, even through a wetsuit; having once bitten, they have been known to hang on and can be very difficult to remove.
Eastern Frogfish
Batrachomoeus Dubius
The Eastern Frogfish has a large mouth, fleshy lips and a tasseled 'beard'. It has a large head with raised eyes. The pectoral fins are large. The three short first dorsal fin spines are reported to be venomous. It grows to 30 cm in length. When captured, the Eastern Frogfish is capable of making a croaking sound.
It hides any where from very shallow waters down to at least 150 m in depth. It has been observed sheltering in holes on rocky reefs, kelp beds and silty areas.
Sea Spiders
Pantopoda ('pycnogonid' = Greek for 'thick knee')
The Sea Spider family consists of over approximately 1,300 species! These small animals live in many different parts of the world, from Australia, New Zealand, and the pacific coast of the US, to the Mediteranean and the Carribbean to the north and south poles. They are most common in shallow waters, but can be found as deep as 7,000 m and live in both marine and estuarine habitats. Pycnogonids are well camouflaged beneath the rocks and among the algae that are found along shorelines. They range in size from 1-10 mm, to over 90 cm in some deep water species.
"Sea spiders" are not true spiders, or even arachnids. Sea spiders have long legs in contrast to a small body size. In total, pycnogonids have four to six pairs of legs for walking as well as other appendages which often resemble legs, these are used for caring for young and cleaning as well as courtship. But some species have been found with five or six pairs of walking legs. Because of their small size and slender body and legs, no respiratory system is necessary, with gases moving by diffusion. A proboscis allows them to suck nutrients from soft-bodied invertebrates, and their digestive tract extends into the legs. Pycnogonids are so small that each of their tiny muscles consists of only one single cell, surrounded by connective tissue. Sea spiders either walk along the bottom with their stilt-like legs or swim just above it using an umbrella pulsing motion. Sea spiders are generally predators or scavengers. Only males care for laid eggs and young.
In 2007 remarkably well preserved fossils were exposed in fossil beds in south-eastern France. Researchers discovered about 70 fossils from three distinct species of sea spider which were around 160 million-years-old.
Green Back Flounder
Rhombosolea tapirina
The Green Back Flounder is commonly found on sandy flats to depths of 100m. They are a part of the righteye flounder family, found around southern Austraila and New Zealand. They are called "righteye flounders" because most species lie on the sea bottom on their left side, with both eyes on the right side.
They grow to approximately 38cm in length; they reach their maximum size at 3-4 years of age. Females lay eggs that float in mid-water until the larvae develop, and they sink to the bottom. Young flounders have eyes placed normally but as it grows it starts to lie on one side and the eye travels across to the other side of its head and its mouth becomes twisted.
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Bat Ray
Myliobatis californica
Bat rays can grow a wing span of 1.8m and weigh up to 90kgs (although they more typically range from 9.07 kg-13.61 kg.) They live in a wide range of environments. They mostly eat mollusks, crustaceans and small fish that lay on the seabed, using their wing like pectoral fins to move sand and expose prey animals. They use their wings to move sand and expose their prey. They do have a poisonous spine on their tails but only use it as defense when scared. Bat rays can live up to 23 years. They mate annually, in the spring or summer, and have a gestation period of nine to twelve months. their litters can contain 2- 10 pups. When the pups emerge, their pectoral fins are wrapped around the body, and the venomous spine is flexible and covered in a sheath which sloughs off within hours of birth
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Blue Swimmer Crabs
The blue swimmer crab is a tropical species of crab that has acclimatized to the cooler conditions of southern Australia. They are found in lots of different places but they prefer sandy bottoms and sea grass meadows. Swimmer crabs are distinguished by the fact that their last pair of legs are swimming paddles. they bury themselves, leaving only their eyes, antennae and gills exposed. They stay buried under sand or mud most of the time, particularly during the daytime and winter. They come out to feed during high tide on various organisms such as bivalves, fish and, to a lesser extent, macroalgae. To mate the male swimmer crab will court a female for four to ten days; this is done by carrying her underneath him. After spawning, the larvae go through lots of different stages before taking on the adult shape.
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Bottle nose dolphins
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Boarfish
Boarfish grow to approximately 50cm and 4.5 kilograms. They are found in sheltered inshore reefs. The Long-Snouted Boarfish is effective at prying into rocky crevices in search of invertebrates and the fish is one of the few that feeds on brittle stars and feather stars. Long-Snouted Boarfish are only found in the waters of southeastern Australia. They tend to be seen close to the shelter of rocky ledges and caves and can be seen guarding small territories. It is found on the deeper sections of the reef and also occurs in other waters down to over 150 metres. Their name translated from Greek pente keras means "five horn".
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