The Ink fish, the sea hare, the sea
slug, the aplaysia, all one creature and one that
makes its appearance now for many too observe. We
are seeing them from our boating tours, some see
them as they gaze to the water from the shoreline
or boat docks or the fishing piers and some see
them washed ashore. Once the sea hare is on shore
it lays there just a glob, oozing purple ink. The
ink will not hurt you but the sea hare does use
it for defense when being pursued as a meal. And
you wonder what would eat that unchewable gummy
bear? A cow nosed ray will. They will make a meal
of it with no problems. I often have wondered if
the dolphins interact with them or maybe use them
as chewing gum! One day alpha male Frosty actually
brought one up in his mouth right in front of our
boat and made it ink by twicking it with his teeth.
Pretty neat to see.
The ink fish are on display at the Sealife Center
and range in size from baby ones to large adults.
They move along like sea cows and graze on greens.
They have tiny pin point dots for eyes and just
barely remnants of a shell left which they have
evolved away from. They are beautiful to look at
up close as they remind me of a starry night. They
have a simple nervous system which has prompted
studies by various universities.
When you find these blobby sea creatures lying on
the beach, it is better to put them in a bucket
and bring them to the sealife center or release
them on the bay side from a dock. They can not swim
back out the surf against the waves and will just
rewash ashore.
The life of the inkfish is spent mostly swimming
and grazing and laying eggs. At the end of the summer
after they have layed millions of strands of eggs
they simply disappear perhaps clinging down in the
grasses no longer having the urge to swim around
to meet mates. They look like angels swimming along
in the bay and we always are reminded of the season
when they appear. Summer is here |
