{"id":336466,"date":"2024-07-15T07:02:25","date_gmt":"2024-07-15T05:02:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=336466"},"modified":"2024-07-15T07:10:07","modified_gmt":"2024-07-15T05:10:07","slug":"squid-sharks-the-sassy-angelfish-at-outer-rock-on-friday","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=336466","title":{"rendered":"Squid, Sharks & the Sassy Angelfish at Outer Rock on Friday"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

From Jennifer Marohasy<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

By\u00a0jennifer<\/a>\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Last Friday it was noisy, so noisy underwater at Outer Rock Reef, to the northeast of Great Keppel Island.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Two humpback whales!  They were having a conversation, that included some screeching, and some howling.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Were they surprised to see the six of us humans underwater?  We couldn\u2019t see them \u2013 but we could hear them.   Visibility was perhaps 10 metres, underwater.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Topside it was a clear sunny day, and on the way back to Great Keppel Island, from the boat we spotted them breeching.  So beautiful.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Leaving Outer Rock, it was on the way back, a little further from here that we spotted the whales. But I don\u2019t have a photograph, of the whales.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

What I did see under the water was a lot of dead coral, so much dead branching Acropora spp..  Now dead from the bleaching back in February and March.   I have estimated about one third of the area of coral has been lost across at the Keppel Islands.  But not of all coral species, it is the Acropora spp. as plates but especially as branching, which have been most affected.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

On the one hand it has been difficult to see so much death.  But there is still so much life.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

One of the highlights of the dive last Friday was to see two Epaulette sharks (Hemiscyllium ocellatum).  One of them lay across an area of broken and mostly dead coral.  My wide-angle photograph of the shark with buddy Jen photographing it allows some assessment of how much, and what all this dead coral looks like in this area at about 10 metres depth.   And it was not easy to spot the shark, its natural colours merged with the algal infested coral.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Stare long enough amongst the dead corals and you find all sorts of things, including nudibranchs. My photographs, wide angle and close-up, are of a gold and blue tiny Phyllidia ocellata.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Around a corner I found that same sassy scribbled angel fish (Chaeotodontoplus duboulayi<\/em>) that came right up to me a month ago, when I last swam this section of reef on 20th June.   On Friday, again, the same fish came up and had a good look inside my face mask.  Until I reached for my camera, and then it swam away. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

I put my camera down, and made some whales noises, and the fish came back and looked me in the eye, waving its head about the other side of my mask.   How I wished, at that moment, I could have communicated that he was indeed a beautiful fish, and so fearless.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The other exceptionally beautiful animals that I saw underwater last Friday were the squid.  Four of them, moving in unison, even staring at me in unison.  They did everything as an evenly spaced foursome. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Can you see them, the four squid?<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"\/<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Squid, Sharks & the Sassy Angelfish at Outer Rock on Friday<\/h1>\n\n\n\n

July 14, 2024 By jennifer<\/a> 3 Comments<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Share<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Share<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Share<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Last Friday it was noisy, so noisy underwater at Outer Rock Reef, to the northeast of Great Keppel Island.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Two humpback whales!  They were having a conversation, that included some screeching, and some howling.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Were they surprised to see the six of us humans underwater?  We couldn\u2019t see them \u2013 but we could hear them.   Visibility was perhaps 10 metres, underwater.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Topside it was a clear sunny day, and on the way back to Great Keppel Island, from the boat we spotted them breeching.  So beautiful.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Leaving Outer Rock, it was on the way back, a little further from here that we spotted the whales. But I don\u2019t have a photograph, of the whales.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

What I did see under the water was a lot of dead coral, so much dead branching Acropora spp..  Now dead from the bleaching back in February and March.   I have estimated about one third of the area of coral has been lost across at the Keppel Islands.  But not of all coral species, it is the Acropora spp. as plates but especially as branching, which have been most affected.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

On the one hand it has been difficult to see so much death.  But there is still so much life.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

One of the highlights of the dive last Friday was to see two Epaulette sharks (Hemiscyllium ocellatum).  One of them lay across an area of broken and mostly dead coral.  My wide-angle photograph of the shark with buddy Jen photographing it allows some assessment of how much, and what all this dead coral looks like in this area at about 10 metres depth.   And it was not easy to spot the shark, its natural colours merged with the algal infested coral.  <\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n
\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Stare long enough amongst the dead corals and you find all sorts of things, including nudibranchs. My photographs, wide angle and close-up, are of a gold and blue tiny Phyllidia ocellata.<\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n
\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Around a corner I found that same sassy scribbled angel fish (Chaeotodontoplus duboulayi<\/em>) that came right up to me a month ago, when I last swam this section of reef on 20th June.   On Friday, again, the same fish came up and had a good look inside my face mask.  Until I reached for my camera, and then it swam away. <\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

I put my camera down, and made some whales noises, and the fish came back and looked me in the eye, waving its head about the other side of my mask.   How I wished, at that moment, I could have communicated that he was indeed a beautiful fish, and so fearless.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The other exceptionally beautiful animals that I saw underwater last Friday were the squid.  Four of them, moving in unison, even staring at me in unison.  They did everything as an evenly spaced foursome. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Can you see them, the four squid?<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

I checked on the expanding patch of bubble-tip anemone (Entacmaea quadricolor).   Remember at this dive site \u2013 not far from the mooring<\/a>.  Where the branching Acropora spp. have lost to the macro-algae with the bubble-tip anemone (Entacmaea quadricolor) pushing through \u2013 taking over.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The dying coral, heavily infested with algae, is being replaced by this expanding mass of anemones dotted with blackback clown fish (Amphiprion melanopus).   Most unexpectedly this apparently expanding mass of anemone is still stark white, but obviously very alive and keeping its tentacles clean of algae.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And so, the bleached anemone (Entacmaea quadricolor) with the help of its symbiotic clowns, is making the very most of the demise of the corals.   <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Indeed, coral cover may have reduced significantly at this reef, but species diversity is arguably on the rise.   <\/p>\n\n\n\n

I am very grateful to Keppel Dive<\/a>, and especially my buddy Jenn (another one) for so many memories.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Ines in the foreground, getting a tank ready to go diving.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

****<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The feature image (very top) is of that angelfish, that is so curious.  A scribble angelfish, Chaetodontoplus duboulayi<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Topside it was a clear sunny day, and on the way back to Great Keppel Island, from the boat we spotted them breeching. So beautiful. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":121246920,"featured_media":336469,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_coblocks_attr":"","_coblocks_dimensions":"","_coblocks_responsive_height":"","_coblocks_accordion_ie_support":"","advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[1],"tags":[691819377,691819663,691828198,691829683,691829684],"class_list":["post-336466","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-coral","tag-coral-cover","tag-great-keppel-island","tag-outer-rock-reef","tag-phyllidia-ocellata","fallback-thumbnail"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/0Feature-SassyP7120368.jpg?fit=2048%2C1361&ssl=1","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/paxLW1-1pwS","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":319930,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=319930","url_meta":{"origin":336466,"position":0},"title":"Stark White \u2013 Fields of Bleached Acropora, Great Keppel Island","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"04\/22\/2024","format":false,"excerpt":"Scuba tank on my back, I rolled backwards off the Keppel Dive boat at Bald Rock reef yesterday into the ocean. I was hoping that as with previous claims of mass bleaching, this was exaggerated.","rel":"","context":"In \"Bald Rock reef\"","block_context":{"text":"Bald Rock reef","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?tag=bald-rock-reef"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/0P4190265-copy-2.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/0P4190265-copy-2.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/0P4190265-copy-2.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/0P4190265-copy-2.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/0P4190265-copy-2.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":334385,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=334385","url_meta":{"origin":336466,"position":1},"title":"Anemones Push Through Collapsed Corals","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"06\/24\/2024","format":false,"excerpt":"Many of the hard corals fringing the Keppel Islands bleached stark white last summer. Specifically, the fields of branching Acropora spp. went stark white. This was likely caused by a combination of high-water temperatures, low tides and no wind. I had never seen anything quite like it before. The water\u2026","rel":"","context":"In \"Acropora spp.\"","block_context":{"text":"Acropora spp.","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?tag=acropora-spp"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/01-Feature-smallerP6200435.jpg?fit=1200%2C1020&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/01-Feature-smallerP6200435.jpg?fit=1200%2C1020&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/01-Feature-smallerP6200435.jpg?fit=1200%2C1020&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/01-Feature-smallerP6200435.jpg?fit=1200%2C1020&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/01-Feature-smallerP6200435.jpg?fit=1200%2C1020&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":335439,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=335439","url_meta":{"origin":336466,"position":2},"title":"Seeing Barren Island Corals \u2013 and Fish.\u00a0 Part 1.","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"07\/03\/2024","format":false,"excerpt":"I had such a good weekend, over at Great Keppel Island completing a PADI Advanced Open Water course with Hayley and Ines from Keppel Dive. We managed five dives over the two days, but I only had my camera with me for the last dive, when we dove Barren Island\u2026","rel":"","context":"In \"Barren Island Reef\"","block_context":{"text":"Barren Island Reef","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?tag=barren-island-reef"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/00F-LemonDamsel-P6300096.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/00F-LemonDamsel-P6300096.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/00F-LemonDamsel-P6300096.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/00F-LemonDamsel-P6300096.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/00F-LemonDamsel-P6300096.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":309528,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=309528","url_meta":{"origin":336466,"position":3},"title":"Fancy Fins Didn\u2019t Help with the Visibility","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"03\/17\/2024","format":false,"excerpt":"According to the mainstream media it\u2019s the southern Great Barrier Reef that has been hit hardest with coral bleaching, and particularly the corals in the Capricorn region that includes Great Keppel Island.","rel":"","context":"In \"Coral reefs\"","block_context":{"text":"Coral reefs","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?tag=coral-reefs"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/image-189.png?fit=1200%2C849&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/image-189.png?fit=1200%2C849&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/image-189.png?fit=1200%2C849&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/image-189.png?fit=1200%2C849&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/image-189.png?fit=1200%2C849&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":344772,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=344772","url_meta":{"origin":336466,"position":4},"title":"All the Dead Coral from the Bleaching. \u00a0Part 4.","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"10\/01\/2024","format":false,"excerpt":"Self-censoring is a real thing \u2013 that I refuse to engage in. Over the last year there has been a dramatic reduction in live hard coral cover at many reefs at the Great Barrier Reef, but this has not been documented in official statistics or in the official reporting that\u2026","rel":"","context":"In \"coral reef\"","block_context":{"text":"coral reef","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?tag=coral-reef"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/0P9260106.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/0P9260106.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/0P9260106.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/0P9260106.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/0P9260106.jpg?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":321805,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=321805","url_meta":{"origin":336466,"position":5},"title":"Wrecked. Day 3. Part 3.\u00a0 Great Keppel Island, April 2024","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"04\/24\/2024","format":false,"excerpt":"According to the Bureau of Meteorology, it was going to storm on Sunday. Instead, the day broke calm and sunny. And so, Jenn (not me, there is another one) and M-J from Keppel Dive, took a few of us around to the very exposed Wreck Beach facing due east. This\u2026","rel":"","context":"In \"April 2024\"","block_context":{"text":"April 2024","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?tag=april-2024"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/0P4210004-cropped.jpg?fit=1200%2C467&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/0P4210004-cropped.jpg?fit=1200%2C467&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/0P4210004-cropped.jpg?fit=1200%2C467&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/0P4210004-cropped.jpg?fit=1200%2C467&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/0P4210004-cropped.jpg?fit=1200%2C467&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/336466","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/121246920"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=336466"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/336466\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":336491,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/336466\/revisions\/336491"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/336469"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=336466"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=336466"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=336466"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}