Just a Typical Day
A garden of lettuce coral basking in the sun with fish flying by in the background. Such breathtaking scene is typical in the Coral Triangle.
Steady...
Talk about challenge! It’s hard to take macro photo when faced with a fast and territorial clownfish who darts in and out of his anemone home. Photographer Lei Xu in action showing his steady hand and concentration in the Coral Triangle.
Happy Valentine's
Love is in the water~
Beautiful Purple Hydrocoral
Purple hydrocoral (Stylaster californicus) looks like coral, but it is not a true coral (meaning it is not a reef building stony coral). Both belong to phylum Cnidaria, but true corals belong to class Anthozoa (sea anemones, corals, sea fans, and sea pens) and hydrocorals belong to class Hydrozoa (jellyfish, Portuguese man-of-war, and fire corals). Farnsworth Bank, a sea mount located off the backside of Catalina Island, is one of few places you can see colonies of purple hydrocorals in southern California.
Playing Underwater
Look at the mischievous expression on this California sea lion. This is from the last trip to the Southern Sea of Cortez and Cabo Pulmo. This young sea lion kept playing with my fins - hugging and nibbling on them. I can’t wait to go back there to play with these playful sea lions this fall.
