Heteropoda davidbowie, a rare Malaysian spider, has been discovered and named by biologist Peter Jaeger, who has found 200 new species of arachnids in the past decade. The naming of new species after rock-stars is now weirdly uncommon, as there are animals named after Mick Jagger, Sid Vicious, Jerry Garcia, Frank Zappa, etc. We featured Myrmekiaphila neilyoungi in May of 2008.

“There is nothing I’d like better than having a jellyfish named after me” – Frank Zappa.

The head of this Brahminy blind snake is at the upper left hand side of the photo.

Yesterday, at a friend’s birthday party here in Miami, an unusual worm-like snake was discovered amongst the leaf litter.  It turns out that this snake (Ramphotyphlops braminus), commonly known as the Brahminy blind snake, is an introduced species to the US from Africa and/or Asia.  It likely hitched a ride in the soil of imported plants. Fortunately, it appears that it is a harmless invasive species in this country, feeding on the eggs and larvae of ants and termites. It would be very easy to confuse this snake with a worm, but close inspection reveals scales, and the occasional flick of the tongue.  Their eyes are covered over by scales, and can only detect differences in light. The mouth is recessed to improve their digging ability.  It is therefore very difficult to discern the difference between the head and tail when the snake is stationary.  This species remains quite small and slender, reaching only about 6 inches in size.

The most interesting aspect of this snake’s life history is that it is parthogenetic.  That is, it is able to reproduce asexually without the help of a male to fertilze the eggs.  All of the offspring (up to eight) are identical clones of the mother. To make matters even more interesting, this species is capable of either giving live birth, or laying eggs.   That just blows our minds…

Recently, we were lucky enough to stumble upon a “battle in action” between our mascot mantis shrimp (Neogondactylus wennerae), Mathman, and a resident anole lizard.  Comically, both creatures thought they were the predator and the other the prey.  Fortunately, the pane of glass put an impermeable barrier between them, so the anole would never find out just how mistaken he was in thinking he could take down the alien crustacean with the powerful raptorial appendages.   The scene took place for at least 5 minutes, with each animal taking turns lunging at each other while the other played “dead”.

Of course this scene had to happen before the bi-weekly aquarium cleaning of Mathman’s Lair (an ADA Mini-S), so pardon the algae growth… we can’t keep any hermit crabs or snails in the aquarium without Mathman either smashing them to bits or doing his best to smash them to bits….

Here are some photos I took in the air on my flight and “undersea” at the Georgia Aquarium on my trip to MACNA:

The clouds were incredibly surreal on my early morning flight, and I was fortunate enough to get a window seat on a plane whose windows were new enough not to be all scratched up.

I have a serious soft spot for “Amazonian” freshwater exhibits at public aquariums.  Several years ago, I believe this aquarium had discus in it.

Don’t you just wanna give this pudgy little electric catfish a hug?

Temperate water non-photosynthetic corallimorphs Corynactis californica in a lovely display with Catalina gobies.

The large Kreisel jellyfish aquarium was magnificent…

In the wake of the MAC (Marine Aquarium Council) devolution, a new organization has emerged from the ashes in Indonesia to do work in the field, within the community, and in the areas where the most change is needed. Enter LINI.

Here Indonesian fish collectors fill plastic bags holding their catch with oxygen via an inflated inner-tube that serves as a reservoir for the gas. (From LINI’s website).

LINI (aka Yayasan Alam Indonesia Lestari) is an Indonesian based non-profit organization dedicated to conserving Indonesia’s coastal resources with primary emphasis on ornamental fisheries…

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I picked up a lot of free promotional material at the ICRS (my personal favorite being a 6 foot National Geographic world map detailing where all the worlds coral reefs are…). This little post card advertising the 2nd Asia-Pacific Coral Reef Symposium really caught my eye. A perfectly-balanced tablular Acropora with a staghorn Acropora species growing in the center… most excellent.

Myrmekiaphila neilyoungi.

A new species of trap-door spider was recently named after Neil Young.