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The Unstartled Steppes of Dream

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I am Ashley.
This is my personal blog. If you want just marine biology, go here.
I love the world; I really don't like people.
I balance all this animosity towards the human race with being an almost always kind and gentle being to all creatures.
I'm highly introverted and nature is my primary escape from people.
Creepy-crawly-slimy things are my favorites. Dinosaurs are fantastic.
Future marine biologist; presently an amateur entomologist, ichthyologist, artist, biologist, and writer.
Literature, video game, and music connoisseur.
I'm so full of passion for the world that it hurts.
I think a lot, I laugh a lot, I love a lot.
Almost none of the photos are mine and only some of the drawings are mine.
Listen in.

The ornate cowfish (Aracana ornata), like all cowfish, has a skeleton made of fused bones, essentially trapping it in a barely-flexible box. For this reason, these fish are typically slow movers; however, it does have an advantage: few other fish are able to eat adult cowfish.
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The ornate cowfish (Aracana ornata), like all cowfish, has a skeleton made of fused bones, essentially trapping it in a barely-flexible box. For this reason, these fish are typically slow movers; however, it does have an advantage: few other fish are able to eat adult cowfish.

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— 2 days ago with 9 notes
#ornate cowfish  #ornate  #cowfish  #fish  #ichthyology  #marine biology  #ocean  #sea  #life  #nature  #animals  #animal  #species  #colorful  #beautiful 
Viper Moray (Enchelynassa canina), particularly well known for its fierce set of teeth.
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Viper Moray (Enchelynassa canina), particularly well known for its fierce set of teeth.

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— 4 days ago with 13 notes
#viper moray  #viper  #moray  #moray eel  #eel  #fish  #ichthyology  #teeth  #marine biology  #ocean  #sea  #life  #nature  #animals  #sea creature  #animal  #predator 
Moray eels are a type of fish belonging to the family Muraenidae. Perhaps one of their most interesting qualities, morays have a second jaw (think Alien), called the pharyngeal jaw, that helps them consume food. This particularly comes in handy because the size/shape of moray eel mouths make it incapable of producing the negative force that helps other types of fish suck food in. Instead, morays catch their prey with their primary jaw and the pharyngeal jaws come forward to pull the food in further, preventing escape.
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Moray eels are a type of fish belonging to the family Muraenidae. Perhaps one of their most interesting qualities, morays have a second jaw (think Alien), called the pharyngeal jaw, that helps them consume food. This particularly comes in handy because the size/shape of moray eel mouths make it incapable of producing the negative force that helps other types of fish suck food in. Instead, morays catch their prey with their primary jaw and the pharyngeal jaws come forward to pull the food in further, preventing escape.

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— 6 days ago with 19 notes
#moray eel  #eel  #moray  #pharyngeal jaw  #jaw  #fish  #marine biology  #ocean  #sea  #life  #nature  #animals  #jaws  #predation 
Chitons are mollusks belonging to the class Polyplacophora. They are mostly flattened with eight dorsal, limy plates. This is where they get their class name from. (Polyplacophora means “bearing many plates.”) These plates overlap posteriorly and are typically dull in color to blend in with their surroundings (though this is not always the case). Most chitons rarely grow larger than 5 cm and the largest rarely ever exceed 30 cm. They’re usually found stuck onto rocky surfaces in the intertidal zone, but some have been found at much greater depths. If a chiton gets detached from its rock, it can roll up like an armadillo for protection.
Shown is the mossy chiton (Mopalia muscosa), whose mantle is covered in defensive hairs and bristles.
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Chitons are mollusks belonging to the class Polyplacophora. They are mostly flattened with eight dorsal, limy plates. This is where they get their class name from. (Polyplacophora means “bearing many plates.”) These plates overlap posteriorly and are typically dull in color to blend in with their surroundings (though this is not always the case). Most chitons rarely grow larger than 5 cm and the largest rarely ever exceed 30 cm. They’re usually found stuck onto rocky surfaces in the intertidal zone, but some have been found at much greater depths. If a chiton gets detached from its rock, it can roll up like an armadillo for protection.

Shown is the mossy chiton (Mopalia muscosa), whose mantle is covered in defensive hairs and bristles.

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— 1 week ago with 16 notes
#chiton  #mollusk  #mollusc  #mollusca  #mossy chiton  #chitons  #marine biology  #ocean  #sea  #life  #nature  #animals  #animal  #species  #plates  #polyplacophora