Exotic Animal Newsflash:

Seven brand new species of deep ocean worms were discovered that actually cast green glowing body parts when they’re disturbed or attacked.

The team was led by Karen Osborn of the Scripps Institution of Oceanography at the University of California, San Diego.

Thought to be used as a defense mechanism to confuse predators, which are unknown as of yet, the  appendages glow green when they’re cast by the worm, and they will actually continue to be “let go” as they’re more and more disturbed.

It’s hypothesized that fish would be their predators as is the case with other swimming worms.

Living between 5900 – 12000 feet below sea level, these species are difficult to find only because it’s difficult to get to. These worms were, then, discovered by remotely operated submarines.

In fact, the worms seem to be very plentiful, often numbering in the hundreds when seen. So, they’re no a rarity deep below the ocean in the northeast and western Pacific Ocean.

They’re thought to have evolved from worms that burrow into the sea floor at deep places in our Earth’s oceans, who also have a bioluminescing attribute.

Their new scientific name is Swima bombiviridis.

Makes you wonder what else is lurking in the great, wide and deep oceans of our planet!

For more information on this discovery and a photo, go to: New species of worms release ‘bombs’

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I hope you enjoyed this Exotic Animal News on Exotic Animal Lover! Until next time…

Live Exotically,

Kimberly Edwards

P.S. For more information about bioluminescence, check out this awesome book about our strange friends in the oceans:

The Winking, Blinking Sea: All About Bioluminescence

Technorati Tags: Swima bombiviridis, ocean worms, bioluminescense, animals that bioluminesce, green bombers, deep sea worms, worms, exotic animal news, Karen Osborn, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, new species

Brand New Species of Deep Sea Worms – The Green Bombers is a post from: Exotic Animal Lover

Wow…I just watched a show on Animal Planet this week with Jeff Corwin where he showed us a decorator crab.

I had never heard of a Decorator Crab before this week.

What they do is grab materials from their surroundings to camouflage themselves.

So, they’ll attach seaweed, algae, plants, sponges, etc to the hooks on their exoskeleton so they blend right in with their underwater environment.

Unbelievably neat.

If you had one of these decorator crabs as a pet, for example, and put a number of tiny pieces of material/swatches in the tank, they would grab them and attach them to their shell because that’s what’s in the immediate area where they live.

Awesome animals!

Scientific Classification:
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Subphylum: Crustacea
Class: Malacostraca
Order: Decapoda
Infraorder: Brachyura
Family: Majidae
Genus: Naxia
Species: N. tumida

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I hope you enjoyed this Marine Invertebrates post on Exotic Animal Lover! Until next time…

Live Exotically,

Kimberly Edwards

P.S. Get your very own Decorator Crab as a pet – how neat is that?

Camposcia retusa “Decorator Crab”- Large The Decorator Crab makes a unique addition to the saltwater aquarium but should be placed in an aquarium with some caution. In the wild they normally use bits of sponge and soft corals to decorate themselves, but have also been seen with anything from plastic to paper on them. They are not recommended in most reef aquariums because they can rip mushrooms or polyps off the rocks use as decoration.In fish-only aquariums they make a nice addition as long as there are no fish that will look at them as food. Fish such as large wrasses, puffers, or triggers are considered predators of the decorator crab. Feed them small pieces of meaty foods, such as krill or silversides occasionally. They will also search the aquarium looking for excess food leftover from your fish.

Technorati Tags: seaweed decorator crab, decorator crab, crab, marine invertebrates, invertebrates, shellfish

Decorator Crabs Know All About Local Style is a post from: Exotic Animal Lover

My hubby and I watched the movie Seven Pounds with Will Smith a few nights ago, which was fabulous, I might add!

In the movie, the main character has a box jellyfish as an exotic pet in a large cylindrical tank!

What an amazing creature, which just happens to have the most deadly venom in the animal kingdom!

In fact, there have been 5,568 human fatalities due to the box jellyfish recorded since 1954.

Extreme care and caution needs to be taken when caring for a pet of this danger level.

Also, you cannot store the jellyfish with any other creature in the tank, as they’ll paralyze it and eat it.

Although so high venomous, the sea turtle is immune to the sting of the jellyfish and is one of their food sources.

However, it is a fantastical invertebrate that you could watch for hours at a time as it pulsates through the water.

In the wild, the seasons of highest risk are from October through May, although they are quite evident throughout the rest of the year too.

Box jellyfish are concentrated in tropical areas such as Australia, Vietnam, Phillippines and Hawaii.

Scientific Classification:
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Cnidaria
Class: Cubozoa
Order: Cubomedusae

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I hope you enjoyed this Invertebrate post on Exotic Animal Lover! Until next time…

Live Exotically,

Kimberly Edwards

P.S. If you haven’t seen the movie “Seven Pounds”, you really must – it’s dramatic, heart warming, a story of love and loss – Fantastic:

Seven Pounds Academy Award nominee Will Smith (2006, Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role, The Pursuit of Happyness) stars as Ben Thomas, a man at a crossroads searching for a way to redeem his heavy conscience. He discovers he has the power to change the circumstances of seven strangers who deserve a second chance. But when one of them captures his heart, he must decide if he should reveal his secret — even if it means giving up on his plan. From the creators of The Pursuit of Happyness, Seven Pounds is an emotionally charged, captivating mystery with a soulful, tender love story and a tearful but joyfully inspiring ending (Movieguide).

Technorati Tags: box jellyfish, jellyfish, invertebrates, tropical animals, marine animals, venomous animals, dangerous animals, Seven Pounds

A Box Jellyfish for a Pet? is a post from: Exotic Animal Lover

The Octopus is known to be the most intelligent invertebrate in the world.

They have 8 legs and no internal or external skeleton!

(Isn’t that just the best octopus poster you’ve ever seen?)

They are truly amazing creatures that can change color, shape and texture in an instant. Octopi (plural) have the ability to camouflage themselves in any environment.

They are able to fit into tiny areas. In fact, large octopi can fit into a quarter-sized tunnel or hole. Unbelievable!

Check out this fabulous video taken on the Great Barrier Reef of the octopus’ marvelous adaptations:

They have a super short lifespan of 2-3 yrs.

I’ve been blessed enough to have seen an octopus in the ocean on the reef off of Lancelin Island in Western Australia.

There were small blue-ringed octopus in the water, so very vibrant to see – almost electric in color!

Good thing I had reef shoes on! Blue ring octopi are extremely venomous and usually quite small and camouflaged on the reef or ocean floor. When feeling defensive, they turn a bright yellow color with electric blue rings.

Scientific Classification:
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Mollusca
Class: Cephalopoda
Subclass: Coleoidea
Superorder: Octopodiformes
Order: Octopoda
Species: There are over 300 recognized species of octopus.

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I hope you enjoy this Marine Invertebrate post on Exotic Animal Lover during Great Barrier Reef Month! Until next time…

Live Exotically,

Kimberly Edwards

P.S. Please be sure to Vote for Me to win the Dream Job of Caretaker of Hamilton Island in the Great Barrier Reef of Australia:

Vote 5-Stars for Kimberly!

Technorati Tags: octopus, octopi, invertebrate, marine invertebrate, Australian animals, ocean animals, Great Barrier Reef

Octopi of the Great Barrier Reef is a post from: Exotic Animal Lover

Yes, it’s beautiful, but deadly!

You’re thinking, “How can a starfish destroy the Great Barrier Reef?”, right?

A simple explanation – Overpopulation.

It feeds on coral polyps and destroys the coral, subsequently, in it’s wake.

This video is about the crown-of-thorns starfish eating corals of the world:

How? As it moves over the coral, it extrudes it’s stomach onto it…The starfish’s digestive enzymes liquefies the coral polyps and they absorb the nutrient content from it.

They have a serious appetite and can destroy up to 6 square meters of coral reef per year each! Therein lies the problem…Coral grows so much slower than that!

Without many natural predators, the starfish flourishes. The giant triton (a mollusc – “snail”) and harlequin shrimp, as well as a few large reef fish will endeavor to make a meal out of the crown-of-thorns, however.

Needless to say, the crown-of-thorns starfish has had an “outbreak” of sorts on the Great Barrier Reef, which is concerning and alarming.

The Crown-of-Thorns Starfish is also harmful to humans, as has a venomous neurotoxin causing nausea, vomiting and pain that could last for weeks. Turning your skin blue where the wound is, it swells.

If the spines of the starfish break off and lodge themselves in your skin, they could cause an infection and increased toxicity.

Apparently, it’s been understood that some divers will inject these starfish with the contents of their own stomach into each one of their legs to kill them.

Why Each One of Their Legs?
Because these starfish have the ability to regenerate legs when injured or dismembered. That’s why divers are sure to inject each leg.

Scientific Classification:
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Echinodermata
Class: Asteroidea
Order: Valvatida
Family: Acanthasteridae
Genus: Acanthaster
Species: A. planci

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I hope you enjoy this Marine Invertebrate post on Exotic Animal Lover during Great Barrier Reef Month! Until next time…

Live Exotically,

Kimberly Edwards

P.S. For more ecological information on the Great Barrier Reef, check out this great Reefscape book:

Reefscape: Reflections on the Great Barrier Reef Located off Australia’s eastern coast, the Great Barrier Reef is one of the wonders of the natural world. Looking beyond the sheer beauty of this place, it is a region rich in history, the setting for fateful shipwrecks and exotic Aboriginal myths.Told in a reflectively poetic voice, Love writes evocatively of the ecological, biological, and geological significance of the reef. Woven throughout is the intriguing history of the area. Reefscape will illuminate the meaning of the human encounter with nature. It will inspire delight in the imagination and spirit of all who yearn for the transcendence of turquoise waters.

Technorati Tags: crown of thorns starfish, starfish, Great Barrier Reef, invertebrate, marine animals, ocean animals

Crown-of-Thorns Starfish Destroys Great Barrier Reef is a post from: Exotic Animal Lover

It’s a living, breathing animal, and it is precious! In fact, it is often called precious coral when it is red or pink in coloration.

The coral that is of red or pink “skeleton” is often used in jewelry making and sculpted art. It is soft and opaque making it ideal to use as beads or cabochon-type settings.

In fact, the coral is the word used to describe the color of the coral too…

It is mostly made up of calcium carbonate, similar to the material pearls are made of and is considered a precious gemstone.

Originally, this species was found in the Mediterranean Sea and is found on non-sedimentary, rocky seabottoms and prefers dark environments.

Scientific Classification:
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Cnidaria
Class: Anthozoa
Subclass: Alcyonaria
Order: Gorgonacea
Family: Coralliidae
Genus: Corallium

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I hope you enjoyed this Invertebrate post on Exotic Animal Lover! Until next time…

Live Exotically,

Kimberly Edwards

P.S. Please be sure to Subscribe to this Blog.

Technorati Tags: coral, red coral, pink coral, coral jewelry, precious coral, precious gemstones, gemstones

Coral is an Animal! is a post from: Exotic Animal Lover