Posts Tagged North Sulawesi

Bubble Trouble

Sun, Apr 18th, 2010  |   Marine Life, Places, Adventures 2 Comments

Have you ever noticed delicate bubble-like things clinging to the bottom of reef and muck sites, usually swaying with the current and looking like not much of anything?

I must’ve swum past hundreds, if not thousands of these…all the time wondering what they were. I confess to having poked a few every now and then to see if anything interesting might happen, but nothing ever did…until Lembeh last month.

After so many years of seeing so many bubbles doing so much of nothing, I saw dozens of these bubbles with what appeared to be aeolid nudibranchs inside them.

aeolid nudibranchs eating worm eggs

In the photo above, you can see at least three nudibranchs inside the bubble, one in the foreground and two behind.

At first, I was just surprised to find something inside one of these bubbles. After looking around a bit and finding many more bubbles with sea slugs inside, I started wondering what the nudibranchs were doing.

We came up with all sorts of theories…ranging from “laying eggs” to “eating the bubbles” and everything in between.

As it turned out, Mean was able to find a reference online, which seems to have solved the mystery. According to well-known nudibranch authority Bill Rudman, the aeolid nudibranchs appear to be feeding on the eggs of some sort of polychaete worm. Bill has tentatively identified the nudibranchs as Favorinus sp.

One of the things that confused me at first was that some of the nudibranchs appeared to be laying eggs, as you can see in this photo:

aeolid nudibranch eating worm eggs

I think the white stringy stuff above the nudibranch are eggs that the nudibranch laid (I have other photos that seem to show a trail of eggs coming out of the nudibranch).

It seems that the nudibranchs, in some instances at least, might be laying eggs of their own as well as eating those that make up the bubbles they’re feeding on. Cool, huh?

Even more intriguing…some of the nudibranchs I came across were really, really small…begging the question of whether they had perhaps recently hatched and subsequently consumed the eggs inside their host bubbles.

tiny aeolid nudibranch eating worm eggs

Going through the process of observing the nudibranchs, coming up with theories about what the opistobranchs were doing, and then confirming our theories online was an incredibly interesting and satisfying process.

But what’s bothering me now is why…after all these years of looking and seeing nothing…we suddenly saw so many of these nudibranchs-in-bubbles over the course of a few days.

Invasion of the Body Snatchers

Thu, Apr 8th, 2010  |   Funny Stuff, Marine Life, Places, Adventures 2 Comments

During my Lembeh trip, I came across this fish:

flounder

At face value, it’s uninteresting…basically just a flounder on the sand. Yawn.

Upon closer inspection though, you’ll see that there are three very sneaky extraterrestrial entities controlling the fish. Seriously.

Cleverly disguised to blend in with the flounder’s colouration, the extra-planetary trio have big black eyes, shiny white teeth (buck teeth in one instance), and somewhat dopey expressions on their faces (though…who am I judge alien visages?).

flounder

Best I can surmise, the bug-eyed body snatchers have constructed see-through portals in the fish through which they survey the world and steer their host flounder. One has to assume that they’ve effected some manner of mind control over the poor piscine.

From a more scientific point of view, this could perhaps be the first documentation of how and why flounders are capable of such effective camouflage…it’s advanced alien technology (not chromatophores, as commonly believed).

I thought about capturing the fish to secure this invaluable technology for the benefit of all mankind, but having studied alien zap-ray weaponry in detail when I was a kid (Star Trek, Star Wars, Mars Attacks, et al.) and also having watched nearly every episode of The X-Files, I decided not to place myself in harm’s way, and fled the scene soon after taking these photos.

In retrospect, one has to wonder though, if you take the trouble to travel several million light years to get here, why on earth would you bother taking over a drab, one-sided fish? There’s just no accounting for alien taste.

(Heok Hui was the first to discover the aliens. I haven’t seen or heard from him since the trip though, so I have to assume that they’ve hunted him down and silenced him. Aliens are good at that.)

Night Safari Video

Sun, Mar 28th, 2010  |   Featured, Places, Adventures, Video, Multimedia 6 Comments

I put together a few photographs and video clips from my recent Night Safari trip at Kasawari Lembeh Resort:


Background music: Ocean by Zach Ashton

As you can tell from the video, it was a fantastic trip…great participants, the perfect venue, and lots of amazing marine life!

Diving through the night was an experiment of sorts…one that fortunately worked out really well. To cut to the chase, the night life in Lembeh was totally fascinating.

Some of the same animals we encountered in normal daylight hours were out and about at night as well, but for the most part, there were different critters and/ or activities.

Not a big surprise, but there were many more crustaceans and cephalopods around in the wee hours than in the day, and even critters we came across during normal hours seemed to be more active at night (like flounders, octopuses, frogfish, etc.)

We managed to see a bit of courtship and mating activity as well, though some of it (like the porcupine pufferfish mating I photographed) took place after everyone else left.

The biggest surprise for me was how easy and pleasant it was to dive on a night schedule.

I expected to be cold most of the time (I even brought along a wool cap, sweater and sweat pants which I never used), but actually, the water temperature and conditions were great through the night.

In addition, waking up mid- to late-morning and jumping into the water for a first dive at 17:30 or so proved to be a very civilised schedule. With much of the morning and afternoon free to chill out, sort through photos, charge batteries, check gear, etc., the night schedule was…well…easy.

Having so much time before the first dive also meant I never went in without charged batteries, lens cap still attached, CF card missing…or any of the other common flub-ups that happen when you’re in a rush or don’t have sufficient time to double-check gear before hitting the water.

I hesitate to speak for everyone on the trip, but I think we all felt this way, and several people asked to be kept informed if there’s another night trip, because they liked this one so much!

I am, in fact, running another night trip later this year in Ambon together with Eric Cheng and Wetpixel.

It’s basically the same idea…diving mostly at night…concentrating on the dive sites collectively referred to as the Twilight Zone. It’s been difficult to dive these prolific sites at night for many years now, but with the new Maluku Divers resort situated close by, we’ll have easy access to Ambon’s critter central.

I have no doubt that it’s going to be an awesome adventure. The underwater topography is similar to, but different from, that of Lembeh, and though there’s certainly an overlap in the resident critter life, Ambon’s marine community is unique…which means lots of new animals and behaviours to see and enjoy.

If you’re interested in checking out Ambon’s night life in November I set out additional details toward the bottom of this post. Otherwise, take a look at the trip description on Wetpixel. Click here for an online presentation about Ambon that I put together previously.

Finally…something of note… I did almost all the sorting, adjustments, editing and output for this video using Aperture 3.

I upgraded to Aperture 3 just before heading out to Lembeh (I’ve used Aperture since the first version), and one of my goals for the trip was to figure out the strengths and weaknesses of this latest update.

Through the process of cataloging thousands of image, video and audio files, and then editing them into the video clip above…I learned a lot(!) about Aperture 3…much of which I think will be useful to other photographers.

Give me a bit of time to recover, and over the next week or so, I’ll jot down some thoughts about what’s good and what’s not with Aperture 3.

Note: Apparently, the little frogfish that gets run over by the urchin on a rampage is an as-yet unidentified species.<strong>Correction: Just received updated information that the unfortunate frogfish is a Histrio histrio, aka sargassum frogfish, which is unusual, since it’s sitting on the bottom with no sargassum seaweed around. Apparently, there is an article being written now about this, based on observations from the Virgin Islands.

By The Banggai

Wed, Mar 24th, 2010  |   Marine Life, Places, Adventures No Comments

I almost forgot about this encounter:

lizardfish eating butterflyfish

While my camera was firing away for the Banggai cardinalfish time-lapse sequence, I stayed nearby to watch over my equipment and make sure nothing went wrong.

Staring at camera equipment firing on autopilot is about as stimulating as watching air tanks get filled, but I made the best of the circumstances by lying perfectly still and eavesdropping on the marine life around me.

About a third of the way through my planned waiting time, a lizardfish (one that was right next to me, but I didn’t see because it was so well camouflaged) leapt into the water column and snatched a butterflyfish in a fraction of a blink-of-an-eye, then darted down to the sand.

I almost didn’t take a second camera with me on that dive, but a little voice inside my head made me change my mind at the last second (which goes to show…hearing voices isn’t always a bad thing).

It took a few minutes for the lizardfish to consume its meal, so I had a bit of time to fumble around in an agitated state and still manage to get some photos.

Banggai Cardinalfish

Mon, Mar 22nd, 2010  |   Marine Life, Places, Adventures 11 Comments

I posted this photo of a bunch of Banggai cardinalfish (Pterapogon kauderni) late last month during my stay in Lembeh:

luggage

I’m accustomed to seeing lots of Banggai cardinalfish in Lembeh, so it was kind of a surprise to receive a comment indicating that the aquarium community generally believes that these fish are on the verge of extinction.

Perhaps they are in other locations, but in Lembeh, they’ve been flourishing for years…even though they’ve been artificially transplanted there and may be displacing other fish.

Here’s a time-lapse sequence of one community of these fish, which should help convey how many there are, as well as how active they are in Lembeh:

As an aside, I tried every which way possible to upload this video to online video sharing services like my Vimeo account, but there was no way I could get the video to look good.

My original .mov file looked fine on my computer, but there is so much movement/ action in the sequence that the re-encoding process for Vimeo made the video look horrible. I tried encoding at really high bitrates (up to 70Mbit/s), but it didn’t make any difference.

So I gave up (after much head-banging and shouting of expletives) and encoded this .flv file and uploaded to my own server. The file is about 65MB, encoded at 20Mbit/s, so it might take a while to load if you’re on a slow connection.

Anemonefish Tending Eggs

Sun, Mar 21st, 2010  |   Marine Life, Places, Adventures, Video, Multimedia 1 Comment

There are many types of anemonefish, all of which live in association with host anemones. Some of the cuter, more charismatic species are often referred to as clownfish…like the false clown anemonefish (Amphiprion ocellaris) portrayed in the movie Finding Nemo.

All anemonefish, irrespective of whether they’re deemed movie-worthy or not, lay large clutches of eggs near their host anemones. The fish care for their offspring with remarkable devotion and energy by clearing away garbage, circulating water over the eggs, and fending off potential aggressors…until the young fry hatch and swim away.

There are many excellent photographs of anemonefish taking care of their eggs, but somehow, a single image doesn’t quite convey the vigour with which these fish attend to their next generation.

During my recent trip to the Lembeh Strait, I spent some quality time with one particular group of saddleback anemonefish (Amphiprion polymnus) at a dive site called Retak Larry.

The fish were in a nice, shallow location with minimal visual clutter. I took several hundred consecutive images of them tending their eggs, and assembled the photos into a couple of time-lapse sequences.

In this first sequence above, the eggs are to the right side of the frame. The bright orange colouration of the eggs indicates that they were laid not too long before I took these images. As the eggs mature, they gradually become transparent, with the nutrients represented by the orange colour morphing into eyes, gills, other vital organs and such.

Watch the video clip, and you’ll get a better idea of how dedicated these fish are. There are two large, mature fish that take care of the eggs, as well as a number of smaller individuals swimming around the anemone.

The second sequence below shows a different angle of the same group of anemonefish, with the bright orange eggs in the foreground.

Underwater Unicorn

Wed, Mar 17th, 2010  |   Marine Life, Places, Adventures 2 Comments

I’m on my way to the airport soon. It’s difficult to overstate how productive and enjoyable my trip to the Lembeh Strait has been, thanks to the great companionship of the many people who joined me here, the generous hospitality of Kasawari-Lembeh Resort and Lembeh Hills Resort, and of course, the fantastic critters of Lembeh.

Despite the fact that I posted photos at least once a day during my stay, there are still a lot of images and stories I haven’t been able to share.

But before I head out, here’s one more image…of a Gymnodoris impudica nudibranch with only a single rhinophore in the middle of its head…an underwater unicorn.

nudibranch with one rhinophore

It’s been around for the entire duration of my stay, so if you’re visiting Lembeh and dive Jahir, keep an eye out around for this single-minded sea slug.

Seafood Dinner

Mon, Mar 15th, 2010  |   Marine Life, Places, Adventures 2 Comments

While I’m on the topic of hermit crabs…we came across this big one today, in the shallows toward the end of our last dive of the day:

hermit crab eating

The crab was eating a mollusc, reaching in from time-to-time to snag-and-snip, then chomp-and-chew.

Despite my curiosity and interest in the crustacean’s actions, I couldn’t help but feel somewhat sorry for the shell, since it didn’t stand a chance against its well-armed aggressor.

Once finished with the meal (we weren’t able to stick around to watch until the end), the crab may have moved out of its old shell and into the newly vacated one (how’s that for a euphemism?).

As an aside, Mean shot this video clip of me while I was taking the photo:

Dining Alone

Sun, Mar 14th, 2010  |   Marine Life, Places, Adventures 1 Comment

Hermit crabs generally don’t inspire the excitement among divers that more sought-after marine life like flamboyant cuttlefish, pygmy seahorses, mimic octopuses and the like do, but actually…they are fascinating critters to observe.

Take this one for example.

I found this crab all alone, sifting through the rubble, presumably looking for food.

hermit crab

Often, these solitary crustaceans duck for cover or run away when you approach, but this one was so preoccupied with lunch that it paid me no attention…even as I positioned my camera, set up lights, got closer to get a better view, and so forth.

In fact, the crab was so nonchalant that it seemed as if the little guy preferred to have me around…so it wouldn’t have to dine alone.

My Silly Friends at Kasawari

Sat, Mar 13th, 2010  |   People, Places, Adventures No Comments

As usual, I had a terrific stay at Kasawari Lembeh Resort…a long one this time, just over three weeks.

It always feels like home at the resort, due entirely to the warmth of the people who work here.

kasawari staff

A group picture is great, but video is much better at conveying the way things are here. I had to coax a little silliness from the gang, but actually, they’re always like this!

Thanks for a great stay, and see you again soon!

Equipment Note: Shooting with the 7D

Fri, Mar 12th, 2010  |   Equipment, Technique 4 Comments

Edward from Nauticam and Ryan from Reef Photo have been at Kasawari Lembeh Resort with me for a few days, and they were kind enough to let me try a Nauticam 7D housing.

Nauticam 7D housing

My intention was to dive with it for several dives, but I was hit with an ear infection and fever yesterday, so as it turns out, I was only able to do one relatively short dive with the set up.

I’m not going to review the housing per se, as it’s not responsible to do so based on a single dive, but since there seems to be a high level of interest in both the Canon EOS 7D camera and the Nauticam housing, I thought I’d post a few observations.

To start…here is my first (and so far only) photo taken underwater with the 7D, coupled with the new Canon 100mm image stabilised macro lens:

goby face

Key Points:
1. The 7D + 100mm IS lens combination absolutely rocks. The goby above is tiny. It’s the same colour and pattern as the sand. It’s skittish. There was a strong current; visibility was sub-optimal; and light levels were really low. Yet…the 7D AF locked on instantly and stayed locked.

In the same situation, my Canon 5D MkII with the same lens would’ve been hunting ’til my eyes crossed from watching the screen go in and out of focus.

I still love the 5D MkII, but I really wish Canon had implemented the 7D’s AF technology into the 5D MkII, because now…the 5D MkII AF seems dead slow.

2. I intentionally chose a small subject. The 100mm on the 7D results in an effective 160mm working focal length, which means a tight perspective. Shooting something big would’ve meant backing up too far, which…in murky conditions, would’ve resulted in washed-out images.

3. I intentionally chose a shallow depth of field, shooting at f6.3 Partly, this was to give the camera’s AF a bit of help under the dark conditions (wider aperture lets in more light), but mostly, it was to minimise visual distraction from the clutter (rocks, dirt, etc.) around the goby.

4. I doubled-down on my bet by using a Subsee +10 diopter that Keri Wilk of ReefNet lent to me. This was to get even closer…in order to eliminate more visual clutter and minimise the particles (and hence, minimise backscatter) between the goby and lens.

As an aside, shooting w/ a +10 diopter on a cropped sensor camera is far from easy. I’d suggest you start with a lower power, such as the Subsee +5, first if you have a cropped sensor camera and you want to try using diopters.

5. It took me about five minutes on land to familiarise myself with the controls on the Nauticam housing, as the position of controls is unique on every housing. The layout was easy to understand, and I had no major issues underwater.

I generally don’t use external viewfinders, but for people who prefer to do so, the Nauticam viewfinder is crisp and clear.

Several people have asked about the piano-key controls on the right side of the housing. These are unusual and innovative. In short, I like them. They’re within easy reach of my thumb, and I found myself using the top one (AF point selection) and the bottom one (Set button) a lot.

Nauticam 7D housing

Most of the camera’s key controls are available at your right hand, which helps to minimise the need to move your hands around the housing when switching settings. With just one dive, I didn’t have sufficient time to play with all the levers and buttons (such as video functionality).

I did, however, spend a lot of time switching focus points. I set the camera for single focus point, AF single shot…and I moved the selected focus point around to suit the composition I wanted.

At first, I tried to use the four buttons that provide access to the multi-directional toggle to switch AF points, since this is what I do on land. But I ended up not liking that, because the toggle is far enough from the right handle that I had to move my hand to reach it…not good when you’re a few centimetres from a skittish goby.

With a bit of fiddling, I realised that the two knobs available to my right hand allowed me to move the AF point without shifting hand position. Much better.

I did, however, find that the knobs were a bit small, making it somewhat difficult to turn them with a single finger. As I understand, there are bigger knobs in the works, to address this very issue.

Nauticam 7D housing

6. The Nauticam housing allows you to trigger strobes with a fiber-optic connection.

I’ve been using fiber for around five years with my Zillion housings, and to honest, I don’t know why everyone else in the world has been so slow to switch from cumbersome, flood-prone electrical sync cords. I’m happy to see out-of-the-box fiber-optic functionality from Nauticam.

I always shoot manual strobe settings, so with the 7D, I set the internal strobe for manual power, at 1/32 (Menu, Flash Control, Built-in flash func. setting, Flash Mode, Manual Flash, flash output, 1/32).

This level of light output is more than sufficient to trigger my strobes, and the low power setting means I can repeat-fire. If you set the internal strobe function to E-TTL, you have the advantage of being able to simulate TTL exposure control with many Inon strobes via the S-TTL function, but the camera’s recycle time could mean that you miss shots.

manual flash setting

Let me conclude by re-emphasising that this is not review! Just a few quick thoughts after one dive. I enjoy trying out new equipment, as doing so helps me to understand the pros and cons of both the underlying photographic gear and various approaches to making underwater housings and accessories…which, in turn, helps to make me a better photographer.

I’m not “for” or “against” any particular camera or housing, so please don’t ascribe anything like that to what I write.

Wait For Me!

Thu, Mar 11th, 2010  |   Marine Life, Places, Adventures 3 Comments

I sometimes hear voices in my head while I’m observing marine life…particularly when the water is frigid and I’m feeling the effects of hypothermia.

Yesterday, I saw these two Hypselodoris infucata nudibranchs, a teensy little one along with a much larger individual.

They were both grazing on a rock, and over the course of perhaps ten to twenty minutes, I watched as the big one put some distance between itself and the little slug.

The small one took notice at a belated juncture, and dashed off (at a snail’s pace…literally), almost as if trying to catch up.

It was at this point that I heard a discussion ensue between these two invertebrates…primarily the little one screaming “Wait for me!” while the big one just grunted.

The little nudibranch took a wrong turn, however, and ended up on a high cliff (from its point of view)…staring out over the chasm that separated it from the other nudibranch.

It was heart-wrenching.

And even more odd (as if this post could get any stranger), the little nudi’s voice that I heard was a high-pitched manga-esque Japanese voice (think…Sailor Moon).

I think perhaps I need to seek professional help.

two nudibranchs