A Snorkeler’s Sapphire Summer

Liz Allen shares some of her wonderful camera work taken at a variety of locations over a delightful summer season on the Sapphire Coast.

Fright interferes with focus when encountering some of our larger ocean creatures. This graceful Stingray at the beautiful Merimbula Bar Beach caught me by surprise as it checked me out before gliding away down the slope of the boat channel. Often seen in the area as they gather at the fish cleaning pontoon for a free feed. Last time I saw a large one with its tail up, I turned round immediately without pressing the camera button.

Smooth Stingray - Bathytoshia brevicaudata

The Short-tail stingray or smooth stingray is a common species of stingray in the family Dasyatidae. 

Knobbed Triton Snail - Charonia lampas

Charonia lampas is a species of predatory sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Charoniidae.

Rose Petal Bubble Snail - Hydatina physis

Hydatina physis is a species of sea snail, a bubble snail, a marine opisthobranch gastropod mollusk in the family Aplustridae.

The following were taken at Kianinny Bay near boat ramp, but not in the channel.

Stargazer - Kathetostoma laeve

Apparently, they are quite aggressive & have been known to bite divers & snorkelers. It started up towards me but I had my photo and left. A face only a mother could love? 

Silver Sweep - Scorpis lineolata

A calm clear day at Bar Beach Merimbula, visibility is good enough to catch this image as the fish hug the rocks the around corner  towards the wharf.

An Ascidean - Botrylloides magnicoecum

Botrylloides are flat sheets of organisms which can be found covering ropes, boat hulls, horseshoe crabs, seaweeds, and any still or slow-moving object in saltwater.

They form large colonies of very small individual zooids, 1-2mm long lying in parallel rows down the side of thumb shaped lobes and have a communal exhaling siphon. ref. Edgar, Australia Marine Life.

Nudibranch (sea slug) - Ceratosoma amoena

Ceratosoma amoenum, or the clown nudibranch, is a species of colourful dorid nudibranch, a sea slug, a shell-less marine gastropod mollusk in the family Chromodorididae. 

The following were taken in an amazing rock-pool at the Tura Headland, a place to avoid if there is an ocean swell even though it is above sea level.

Sydney Sea Hare - Aplysia sydneyensis

8 Armed Sea Star - Meridiastra calcar

Patiriella calcar, or Meridiastra calcar, commonly known as Carpet Sea Star or Cushion Sea Star or Eight-armed Sea Star, is an Australian species of sea star.

Green Anemone - Aulactinia veratra

Aulactinia veratra, the green snakelock anemone, is a species of sea anemone in the family Actiniidae. It is native to the southeastern Indian Ocean and the southwestern Pacific Ocean.