Why restore Hong Kong's lost oyster reefs?
Research jointly conducted by The Swire Institute of Marine Science (SWIMS), Faculty of Science, The University of Hong Kong (HKU), and The Nature Conservancy (TNC) emphasises the importance of oyster reefs in mitigating some problems associated with coastal development, like storm-surge damage and biodiversity loss.
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Clam lived to be over 500 years old
This makes the otherwise unassuming Arctica islandica clam the longest lived animal species on record, though some corals are probably much older. The clam was initially named Ming by Sunday Times journalists, in reference to the Ming dynasty, during which it was born.
Researchers from Bangor University in North Wales – unaware of the animal’s impressive age – determined the age by drilling through and counting rings on its shell (a technique known as sclerochronology). In the process the clam died.
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The low-key, dull-coloured flamboyant cuttlefish
Based on a recent study, researchers at the Marine Biological Laboratory have found that the flamboyant cuttlefish doesn't spend the day flashing its vibrant colours for our cameras.
Rather, it spends almost all its time camouflaged, in dull, subdued (safe!) colouration.
Shipworm: The Scourge of Wooden Wrecks is Really a Mussel
Have you ever wondered why some bodies of water, such as the Baltic, have so many wooden wrecks in great condition while other areas have almost no wooden wrecks at all? It has something to do with salinity; however, it is not the salt in seawater that consumes the wrecks but a mussel, which somewhat confusingly is called a worm—and it only lives in saltwater.
Giant Australian Cuttlefish
The giant Australian cuttlefish (Sepia apama) is the largest cuttlefish in the world, reaching up to half a metre in total length and weighing in at around 11kg. Solitary animals, they are found all along the coastline of the southern half of Australia—from Central Queensland on the eastern coast, right around the bottom of the continent and up to Ningaloo Reef in Western Australia.
Cephalopods - Jet-powered Masters of Disguise
Most cephalopods—the group in which scientists classify octopuses, squid, cuttlefish and nautiluses—can change color faster than a chameleon. They can also change texture and body shape, and if those camouflage techniques don’t work, they can still “disappear” in a cloud of ink, which they use as a smoke-screen or decoy.