Octomom Merry Strikes Again. Three Nests On One Rock!

[MaxBottomtime]

This is getting old. I've been scuba diving for twenty-two years and had never seen octopus eggs until last month. Merry found two nests together on the landing craft. We later found a single nest on the Redondo Barge. Today, Merry dragged me over to a rock and showed me three nests, each guarded by an octopus, all on a rock about two square feet in size. Many eggs have hatched, and many more are unfertilized.

Meanwhile, life on the barge is still booming. I'm always amazed at the number of animals who survive crawling around on iron oxide.

 

[herbdb]

Thanks for sharing! Great pictures.

 

[drbill]

Phil & Merry... THREE octopus nests on such a small rock. That is really amazing. I think I need to borrow Merry's eyes!

 

[Merry]

THREE octopus nests on such a small rock.


Finding multiple nests within a foot of each other was unexpected. I wonder if it could be due to lack of suitable nesting sites or if sharing the site confers an advantage in terms of predation. Wouldn't it be interesting to do a controlled study!

 

[FrankPro1]

Wow! Those final two Simnia shots are incredible. What's the fluted hole on their foreheads? Great series of shots. The more you dive the Barge, the more species seems to pop up. The once joke of a dive site has now become a hidden gem.

I think I need to borrow Merry's eyes!

Tell me about it! The last time we were on the Barge, Phil and Merry pointed out Aegries albopunctatus nudibranchs which were incredibly tiny. No way I could have spotted them, let alone identify them, without their help.

 

[BKP]

What incredible shots! Thanks for sharing!