WORLD WAR II LOST SUBMARINE FOUND! RELATIVELY INTACT

SMITHSONIAN MAGAZINE : WWII SUBMARINE FOUND AFTER 80 YEARS 

Excerpt: The vessel is submerged under 3,000 feet of water in the South China Sea near Luzon, an island at the northern end of the Philippines. The USS Harder is sitting upright on the seafloor and is relatively intact, except for damage to its conning tower from the Japanese depth-charge that sank the submarine.

Check out the four-dimensional photogrammetry model photo!

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BIODIVERSITY CORAL

 

THE INTERNATIONAL UNION FOR THE CONSERVATION OF NATURE - HIGH SEAS TREATY

https://iucn.org/ 

United for Life & Livelihoods

The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) is a membership Union uniquely composed of both government and civil society organizations. By harnessing the experience, resources and reach of its more than 1,400 Member organizations and the input of some 17,000 experts, IUCN is the global authority on the status of the natural world and the measures needed to safeguard it.

High Seas Treaty achieves milestone of 60 ratifications, paving the way for ocean protection

Gland, Switzerland, 20 September 2025 (IUCN) – Over sixty countries have ratified the Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction Agreement ahead of the 80th Session of the UN General Assembly in New York, heralding a new era for protection of international waters.

CAN YOU HEAR THE OCEAN IN A CONCH SHELL?

Can you? 

It's air trapped in the shell...

 

WORLD WILDLIFE FUND : WORKING IN NATURE'S AQUARIUM - THE GULF OF CALIFORNIA

WORLD WILDLIFE FUND - GULF OF CALIFORNIA

Excerpt: Wedged between the mainland of Mexico to the east and the Baja Peninsula to the west is the GULF OF CALIFORNIA.  

Described by French ocean explorer Jacques Cousteau as the world's aquarium, the gulf supports an extraordinary diversity of marine life, which includes endangered marine turtles and dolphins, coral reefs and over 900 different fish species.

The waters are also an important breeding area for the world's largest animal, the blue whale and other whales such as fin, sperm, orca and humpback.

But pressures from unsustainable tourism, development and commercial fishing are threatening the wildlife and the way of life for millions of people who depend on the sea for their livelihoods.

SEA SHEPERD : VASQUITA ON THE BRINK OF EXTINCTION : SEA OF CORTEZ : MEXICO : IT'S POSSIBLE ONLY TEN EXIST!

SEA SHEPHERD ORG : VAQUITA 

SEA SHEPHERD CREWS have spent over a decade in the upper Sea of Cortez defending the Vaquita Porpoise from the brink of extinction. Jacques Cousteau called the region, “the aquarium of the sea”. In spite of being endemic (non-migratory) to these nutrient-rich waters, scientists estimate only ten Vaquita remain today.

AXOLOTL : MEXICO'S ENDANGERED FISH : CRITICALLY ENDANGERED AXOLOTL : SALAMANDER WITH GILLS : HABITAT LAKE NEAR MEXICO CITY : MAYBE ONLY 50 -1000 LEFT IN THE WILD!

I must say that these Axolotl are some of the ----cutest ---- fish I've seen. But at a local library event I stopped in at recently, the children were crayoning coloring pages of this fish ---- and I had no idea it was actually critically endangered! My internet searches revealed that considering them play-things was common... IN FACT THERE ARE MANY YOUTUBE VIDEOS ENCOURAGING OWNERSHIP OF THIS FISH!!! 

I DON'T LIKE THAT IDEA AT ALL!

Endangered species do not belong in home aquariums. If you have such a creature in a home aquarium I ask you - please - to contact your closest aquarium or university that has a marine biology program. I would like to see such fish united in a marine environment where they can live a more normal fish life and possible reproduce...

Earth Org : Spotlight on endangered species AXOLOTL


Excerpt: Unlike other amphibians, the axolotl is neotenic and does not go through metamorphosis, thus remaining aquatic and retaining its juvenile features into adulthood. A popular pick for the exotic pet trade, the ever-smiling, feathery-gilled axolotl is easily bred in captivity, having further piqued the interest of scientists and geneticists through its ability to regenerate parts of its body, such as its limbs, eyes, heart, spinal cord and parts of its brain. As such, the species’ plight is regarded as a conservation paradox: although abundant in captivity, rampant habitat degradation and disturbance has rendered the species critically endangered in the wild.

TOTOABA : MEXICO'S ENDANGERED FISH : TOTOABA : FISHING ALSO ENDANGERING THE VAQUITA PORPOISE : DUAL EXTICTION DUE TO BYCATCH : SEA SHEPHARD ORG

PORPOISE CONSERVATION SOCIETY

Excerpt: Capable of reaching over six feet in length and weighing up to 220 pounds, these fish were once abundant in the region, serving as a staple for local communities and a thriving commercial fishery in the mid-20th century. However, overfishing and habitat degradation have led to a dramatic decline in totoaba populations, pushing them to the brink of extinction. ...

It is the totoaba’s swim bladder, an organ that helps the fish control its buoyancy, that has become the epicenter of a black-market boom. In traditional Chinese medicine, these swim bladders, known as “fish maws,” are believed to have numerous health benefits, including promoting longevity and vitality. This demand has driven up the price of totoaba swim bladders to astonishing levels, earning them the nickname “cocaine of the sea.”

The illegal fishing methods used to catch totoaba, particularly gillnets, have proven disastrous for the vaquita population. Gillnets, designed to catch fish by their gills, are indiscriminate, often trapping and killing vaquitas as bycatch. As a result, the vaquita, already struggling with declining numbers, has become collateral damage in the race to supply the lucrative totoaba trade.
A Dual Extinction

The intertwined fates of the vaquita and the totoaba have given rise to the term “dual extinction,” highlighting the fact that both species are teetering on the edge of oblivion. With the vaquita’s population plummeting to fewer than 20 individuals and the totoaba’s numbers in a critical state, urgent action is needed to prevent both species from disappearing forever.

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Did you know that you can bring up past posts about the Vaquita?  Use the search feature embedded in this blog!

JELLY FISH ORAGAMI

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THANK YOU TO DOVER PUBLISHING FOR THIS SAMPLE.

NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUM - UNITED KINGDOM : ON SO MANY JELLYFISH : THEY ARE OLDER THAN THE DINOSAURS

NHM - UK : JELLY FISH 

I think jelly fish are so beautiful and - usually - graceful. This web site has some excellent photographs, illustrating the diversity of jelly fish beauty!

Excerpt: Jellyfish come in incredible shapes, colours and sizes. Most jellyfishes’ bell-shaped bodies are between two centimetres and 40 centimetres across. However, some species can grow to more than two metres in diameter, with thin trailing tentacles that are even longer than that.

Jellyfish have radial symmetry, meaning that if you sliced a jellyfish down the middle, the parts would be symmetrical, like the segments of an orange.

These cnidarians are famous for their stinging abilities. The intensity of the sting varies by species.

Some jellyfish can also generate their own light, called bioluminescence – further adding to their otherworldly beauty.

*** Search this article to learn HOW THEY EAT and HOW THEY STING!

C 2025 Sirens Link to Sea

PINK MEANIES - FLOATING COTTON CANDY? THESE JELLY FISH WASH ASHORE - THEY CAN HAVE 70 FOOT TENTACLES and THEY STING

HART RESEARCH ORG

Excerpt:

The Gulf is the ninth-largest body of water in the world. It’s more than twice as big as Texas. But its vast scale isn’t the only thing that makes it significant. The Gulf is a laboratory to explore all the big challenges facing our oceans today.

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CBS : PINK MEANIE JELLY FISH GULF OF MEXICO

They eat moon jellies!

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In 2011 they were identified as a new species.... They can be found in the Gulf of Mexico, South Africa...

CABRILLO MARINE AQUARIUM SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA SPECIES - INCLUDING THE BLACK ABALONE, ACORN BARNACLE, BLUE SHARKS, and SO MANY OTHERS

CABRILLO MARINE AQUARIUM : SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA SPECIES  Check out this list ! Click on the photograph and go to the science facts!

Which of these creatures are considered to be HERBVORES because they eat algae?