Hum haven't posted in a while...

Oooo, is there a Lionfish in there? We haven't found any in a while here on St Croix(croy). Seems there were nine or ten caught, over a year's time. Each one was bigger than the last. The very first sightings were one one dive by a tourist that took photos of eight or more, all about three inches long. These were reported, not caught, booo. It's looking like that was an isolated invasion.

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The Island of Bonaire is having the same thing happen, all of a sudden there are little Lions all over the place. The park people there are doing their best to catch them.

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In the Bahamas, the Officials didn't realize what a devastating effect these fish have on the population of reef fish, and they dawdled with any attempt at control. There was a Lionfish Rodeo a few months ago on one of the islands, and in one day, 1,400 lionfish were brought in.

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OK, all for now. I'm designing my studio to be able to paint efficiently, so I'll be an artist someday soon!

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Thanks for stopping by!

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A blurry image of a Pillar Coral.  They can grow to be ten feet tall, or maybe even more.  The polyps, when extended, feeding, look like waving fields of grass or wheat.
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A Barrel Sponge, they do this sometimes, grow in a group.  The bushy-looking things aren't plants, they're Gorgonian Corals,  Animals.  Hum.

Oh boy!

Experimenting here, still learning the new computer. We're having "discussions" Does no good to disagree with a computer!!

How about some salad?

Oops! Two of the same image! I don't know if Blogger has changed, or if it's this new computer that I'm still learning. Can't seem to delete, owell!

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Sometimes photographer call these kinds of photos 'salad' because they don't have just one big subject splat in the middle. This-is-a-fish This-is-an-octopus

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I rather enjoy the mess.

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Thanks for stopping by!

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A bunch of barrels

Barrel Sponges perched on this 'hill side'.

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Barrel sponges, or sometimes called Basket Sponges, can get huge. Big enough for a diver to sit inside, but that's a very bad idea because, even though these are sponges, they are very brittle and break easily.

OK, thanks for stopping by!

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Groovy sand

This is a formation seen in the Sea often, a "groove" of sand.  I guess the sand settles in low places, then constant wave action keeps the sand moving back and forth so coral polyps and other things(sponges, zoanthids, etc) cannot settle and start building reef structure.  There are pathways on reef slopes like this, and they almost always lead to deeper water, or shore, depending which way you follow them.  Oh, usually currents go across them sideways, bringing more sand to settle, hey?
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 Mother Nature or Neptune or somebody doesn't work with a backhoe and a blueprint.  This one has a dead end!    Or a beginning?  This photo is looking toward shore.
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Oops, not very good focus, but you get the idea.  There can be dramatic overhangs.
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And sometimes the sand areas aren't very well defined into little valleys.

All for now!  These photos are from two dives done this morning on a Lionfish Hunt.  Successful hunt!  None found.  Gadzooks, I took 680 snapshots!  More tomorrow, they're not ALL out of focus.

Thanks for stopping by!
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Friday photo

Sea Stars. The last one is eating something. I didn't grab him and wreck his day just to satisfy my curiosity.

They do have eyes of a sort, on the ends of their arms.

OK, thanks for stopping by.

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Today's photo

I'll at least post a photo a day as I get up and running here.  I haven't even been diving much lately, even though the sea is still quite warm.  Along about February and March it gets cool, for me, and I shiver getting in!  So, 82 degrees fahrenheit is my comfort zone.

Mr Barracuda hanging out in the lee of a big Gorgonian Coral.
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Thanks for stopping by!

A barrel Sponge

OK, I'm getting this new computer figured out. Gee, it's been a long time! And during this month of December, there are plans for some nice additions around here. Artwork, believe it or not.

Finally!