Strange Sea Monster. FOR SALE!
An earlier post showed an area of coastline ruined by huge amounts of rubbish- this post is the opposite.
Beach combing and climbing around rock pools can show just how diverse life is under water. It also shows the strange and wonderful variation of creatures that live there. I imagine the deeper you go, the more amazing and strange it gets. I have never been scuba diving but simply exploring the shallows either by snorkeling or wading through knee deep opens up a lot of surprises.
This photo of a Sea Cucumber was one of many that were just lying around. The tide had gone out and dozens of them were left stranded on the rocks. This must happen everyday so no doubt these slimy creatures have adapted to the heat and UV of the sun.
A quick search showed, they are sold as food in China! and can even be bought on Alibaba.com. I think I found this more weird than how they look!
.png)
I have no idea how they taste- if anyone has tried them, please comment below lol.
In the same rock pools, Spiny Sea Urchins (Diadema setosum) were everywhere. I avoided these at all costs, knowing how sharp and rigid those spikes were.
Sitting on the rocks, I could see how they slowly moved over to find deeper water. As the water level kept dropping, they were left with no choice other than stay put. Their spikes dropped and they waited for the next high tide.
The sand had black sediment in causing ever-changing streaks and patterns on the beach. We were told it came form volcanic activity in the distant past.
Please FOLLOW and UPVOTE to get more of my posts :)
Well I remembered this sea cucumbers from when I was still a small kid and I was back then in Croatia with my parents. It was fun to throw around with them but I would never guess you can eat them. It wouldn't be the first wired thing the Chinese people eat. Am I Right? ;)
Haha I am sure there are strange menus from across the world that we couldn't even imagine.
I'm not sure I'd eat one! We need to be very careful about what we eat from the sea as the food web is incredibly complex. When it comes to eating meat humans have opted to eat meat that feeds directly on grass because it is cheaper to produce. We haven't opted for this system in the oceans yet, we could be doing great damage by eating fish lower in the ocean food chain... Maybe Sea Cucumbers are playing an important role!
A good point- the other strange thing was that there didn't seem to be an natural predators. Perhaps they tastes better when they are dried and cooked. They might have some kind of toxins in when eaten raw.
What a cute monster! And they also seems yummy! You are making me hungry @thinkit lol
U can order an alibaba haha
Ordered!