Nudi Gal: Off The Grid

Thursday, September 27, 2012

Off The Grid

It’s wild to be completely disconnected for 12 days. I had to look up the fact that it is now Thursday and we are 18 dives into a 40 dive trip. And I don’t get off the boat until next Wednesday. This is amazing. I am completely AWAY.

I do need to work on my tan though. It seems there is no time for me to just relax and read a book in the sun. I am constantly working on identifying my nudis and coming up with my unique list!

102 - Phyllodesmium iriomotense

So dainty.

103 - Flabellina sp. 2

This one was crawling on one of the skewers we used to mark an interesting nudi.

104 - Chelidonura varians

105 - Gymnodoris ceylonica

I am fascinated by these because you can see right through them. These two are mating and you can see right into their genital aperture. Whoa.

106 - Aeolidiella alba

This little guy rocks back and forth like an itty bitty rocking horse.

107 - Bornella cf. adamsii

There was one stretch of the slope where there were dozens of these foot long bornellas. They have quite a personality and all of us divers were excited about them.

108 - Flabellina sp.

109 - Eubranchus sp.

110 - Janolus sp.

This one is so pretty and there's an imperial shrimp on it!

111 - Stiliger ornatus

These seem to always be found on leaves.

112 - Cuthona sp. (orange with black cerata)

113 - Chromodoris verrieri

The gills are retracted.

114 - Cuthona sp. (whispy white one with lavendar rhinophores)

sp is short for species. It means that the species is not yet identified yet by a scientist. There are only a few Nudibranch scientists qualified to dissect, research and identify a new one so until then, they are sp, sp.1, sp. 2, etc. Real nudibranchers call them "Spa 1", not "s.p.1".

I know, I'm sharing too many secrets of the slug club.

115 - Cuthona sp. (orange body with white, pink tipped cerata)