Discovery @ Semakau on 3 Aug 2008

Seventy Second Discovery Posting:

Semakau land-fill island, a place where you can get great views of the sunset (pictures below)


Just over the weekend, we spent our night over at Semakau for some star gazing and most importantly, to explore a part of Semakau where we don't usually go to.

And for the first 'discovery' is something which I have never seen before, according to the RY and JH, this is the hell's fire anemone (picture below).
Discovery Note:
1. Like all anemones (which i know of), this anemone also has stinging cells, but...
2. This is called the hell's fire anemone as it is said to give a very painful sting.

And it's always great to see knobbly sea stars at Semakau, especially juvenile ones (pictures below)! Second 'discovery'! Discovery Note:
1. These sea stars can grow to as big as your face!
2. They are considered to be threaten due to the lost of habitat and probably collection.

The third 'discovery' of the day have to be the best discovery of them all for the morning, a Luidia maculata (picture below). This is my first time seeing this!Discovery Note:
1. This sea star sallows its food compared to eating with their stomachs out of their body for most other sea stars.

Fourth 'discovery' is a orange flatworm with white spots which I have never seen before also (picture below).Discovery Note:
1. Flatworms are hermaphrodite, which means a flatworm has both the male and female sex organs.
2. And certain species of flatworms engage in penis fencing, in which two individuals fight, trying to pierce the skin of the other with their penises; the first to succeed inseminates the other, which must then carry and nourish the eggs.

For fifth 'discovery', take a guess by looking at this picture to guess what it is (picture below)
What creature do you think this is (picture below)?Discovery Note:
1. This is a spider conch.
2. It moves around by 'pole-vaulting' itself (look at the picture above, it's in a state where it's about to 'pole-vault').
3. It's considered threaten due to habitat lost and over collection for its shell and as food.
4. Read more about them by clicking here.

I'll leave everyone with a beautiful sunrise from Semakau (picture below).Thanks to LK for organising the trip and everyone else for making this trip fun. It's just too bad we missed the firefiles as they seem to have moved to another spot. =)

Extra:
1) Check out tidechaser's blog entry on this trip.
2) Check out manta's experience for many different patterns of shells he photographed during this trip.