Both male and female copepods can mate to produce what's called a "cyst." These cysts are egg-like structures that protect the offspring until they're ready to hatch. However, female copepods can produce these cysts on their own. These cysts may hatch right away, or some may fall to the bottom of a water source and remain until they're ready to hatch. If a body of water dries up, the cysts will remain buried until rain or flooding introduces water back into the environment. These cysts can survive for seemingly endless amounts of time, hatching whenever water is reintroduced.
Tornadic waterspouts are tornadoes that form over water, or move from land to water. They have the same characteristics as a land tornado. They are associated with severe thunderstorms, and are often accompanied by high winds and seas, large hail, and frequent dangerous lightning. Fair weather waterspouts usually form along the dark flat base of a line of developing cumulus clouds. This type of waterspout is generally not associated with thunderstorms. While tornadic waterspouts develop downward in a thunderstorm, a fair weather waterspout develops on the surface of the water and works its way upward. By the time the funnel is visible, a fair weather waterspout is near maturity.
The Asian Boneytongue is a freshwater fish found in the rivers of Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, and Myanmar. It is also called a dragon fish and is considered a lucky fish by the natives because of its resemblance to the Chinese mythical dragon. Boneytongues get their name from their toothed tongue on the floor of their mouth equipped with teeth that bite against the teeth on the top of the mouth. Adults have a stocky build and long bodies, growing up to 35in in length, and large elongate pectoral, dorsal, and anal fins. It comes in many different colors, most commonly green but they can also appear silver, red, gold, and blue in color.
Tetra is the common name that is given to the small freshwater characiform fishes. It is a type of fish that is very small in size and is the prey to many predators. There is no accurate number as to how many tetras there are in the world. Tetras are known as schooling fish. Some of the known varieties are Buenos Aires tetra, emperor tetra, black tetra, Mexican tetra, bleeding heart tetra, penguin tetra, bucktooth tetra, x-ray tetra, vampire tetra, blue tetra and more. They live mostly in groups and are found to be happy and stress-free when they are in their respective groups. When keeping these fish as pets, you should have at least five to six tetras so that they can play with each other in the tank as a group, or else they will get lonely.
In less than a year, the Nomura's jellyfish grows from the size of a grain of rice to larger than a person. It is one of the largest species of jellyfish, spanning two yards across and weighing 450 pounds—as heavy as a full-grown grown lion! To reach this size, the Nomura's jellyfish hungrily feeds on small plankton, using its hundreds of microscopic mouths. Equipped with lethal barbs called nematocysts, the soft body of the Nomura's jellyfish is not only protected from predators, but also provides safe haven for tiny fish that learn to dodge the poisonous weapons. Its toxin causes swelling, redness, and extreme pain, and in the worst cases, it causes shock and death. Its venom is composed of a cocktail of various things, many of these components resemble toxins present in other organisms like bacteria, bees, snakes, and spiders.
The reedfish, ropefish (more commonly used in the United States), or snakefish, Erpetoichthys calabaricus, is a species of freshwater fish in the bichir family and order. It is the only member of the genus Erpetoichthys. It is native to West and Central Africa. The reedfish reaches a maximum total length of 37 cm (15 in). It has an eel-like, elongated body without a trace of a ventral fin. The long dorsal fin consist of a series of well-separated spines, each supporting one or several articulated rays and a membrane. The reedfish possesses a pair of lungs, enabling it to breathe atmospheric air. This allows the species to survive in water with low dissolved oxygen content and to survive for an intermediate amount of time out of water. Larvae have conspicuous external gills, making them resemble salamander larvae. The genus name derives from the Greek words erpeton (creeping thing) and ichthys (fish)
The family of gunnels and various related species are called by different names such as crescent gunnel (Pholis laeta), rock gunnel (Pholis gunnellus), or butterfish gunnel. The crescent gunnel is named after the crescent-shaped markings on its body, while the butterfish gunnel is named by the fishing community due to its slippery body.
The emperor shrimp develops a symbiotic relationship with a range of nudibranchs and holothurians, or sea cucumbers. The shrimp lives on the surface of the host, which offers him protection from predators and an extra source of food. The relationship benefits the host, as the shrimp consumes any parasites on its skin. The shrimp doesn't stay still, but constantly moves up and down his host, looking for food from the substrate or that has been disturbed by the host.
Dolphin milk is extremely rich and fatty compared to human milk or cow's milk, and dolphin babies grow quickly over a period of years. Young dolphins learn to catch fish on their own, and they drink less of their mother's milk. A dolphin mother will always wean her youngster before she gives birth to another baby.
Only the male humphead wrasses have a hump. The hump is a sexual dimorphic trait — the hallmark hump is not found in female fish. Marine biologists believe that the size and the shape of the hump signals the genetic qualities of the male. The function of the hump is compared to that of the antlers, horns and tusks, with one exception — they are never used for fight. The older the fish, the more prominent its hump. In addition, as the male fish ages, its hump assumes a brilliant blue color.