Red Phalarope Monterey Bay Aquarium

Not all the creatures at the Monterey Bay Aquarium swim in the water. Here's a case in point; this guy, officially titled Phalaropus fulicaria, or more commonly "red phalarope" swims on top of the water. While spending some of its time on the seashore, the red phalarope spends long periods out at sea. In California they are also common at Lake Mono where they feed on brine shrimp in the very salty waters of the lake, building up fat supplies for their long migrations.

You can read more about the red phalarope at the Monterey Bay Aquarium website.

Kelp Forest at Monterey Bay Aquarium

Kelp forest can be found up and down the California coast, and especially in the Monterey Bay. When visiting the aquarium you could see sea otters playing in the tops of the kelp forest off in the distance from the boardwalk in front of the aquarium. The main exhibit in the aquarium features a kelp forest, which is where I took this photo. The Moneterey Bay Aquarium pumps millions of gallons of water through its exhibits from the bay every day, providing natural nutrients for the exhibits resulting in a thrivingly healthy sea environment.

Coral and Starfish Monterey Bay Aquarium

Once again I am guessing at exactly what is the subject of this photograph. I think it's a coral reef, but perhaps it's not. (Will aquaken from the Monterey Bay aquarium staff enlighten us once again?) That is a red starfish in the bottom foreground - that much I know, but I bet it has a fancier name than that!

Fish-Eating Anemone Monterey Bay Aquarium

Urticina piscivora

OK, so it's not quite a man-eater, but this innocent-looking anemone waving its arms around much like the robot in "Lost in Space" is not actually trying to warn Will Robinson, but actually reaching out for small fish and the like! Read more about Urticina piscivora at the Monterey Bay Aquarium's website: Urticina piscivora

Harbor Seal at Monterey Bay

Harbor Seal Sunning Itself on a Rock

Is this the picture of bliss or what! This harbor seal was sunning itself on a rock that was becoming submerged by the rising tide in Monterey Bay right off the wharf at the Monterey Bay Aquarium. Personally I would go for a rock where I didn't have to hold my head and tail out of the water like this, but I guess it's just like we are at times and just too tired to move!

Here's a link to the Monterey Bay Aquarium's listing of Monterey Bay marine mammals.

Striped Surfperch Monterey Bay Aquarium

You could prove me wrong and tell me this is not a parrot fish, but I believe it is after going through EVERY fish on the Monterey Bay Aquarium website. The photo they have of a parrot fish has the fish hiding in the rock so you don't get a very good view of him, but they do say that "their coloring ranges from reds to greens, blues and yellows, as well as grays, browns and blacks." I wish I'd made a note of the fish when I was there, but I didn't and it's well over a year since I was there.

Here's an update on what kind of fish this is; a kind member of the aquarium posted the below comment pointing out that the fish is actually a striped surfperch, Embiotoca lateralis. Thanks, "Aquaken"!

The Monterey Bay Aquarium located on the southern end of Monterey Bay on California's coast is one of the most amazing places you could ever get to visit. If you are ever in the area, make sure you get there. You won't be disappointed.

It was a pretty hard environment in which to take photos. Of course the fish are constantly on the move, people are pushing to get to the glass, and light is low. So to risk blurring you have to take a fairly short exposure, which means you have to go very high on the ISO selection. There was either a lot of stuff floating in the water, or there was water splashed on the glass, but in the original photo there are a lot of white blobs in the water around the fish. So I had to do something to remove this distraction and used Photoshop radial blur filter to eliminate them as well as to give a sense of motion about the fish. It's what you call making the most of a less-than-prefect shot.

Canon EOS 20D
1/100sec at f/5
ISO800
70~300mm lens at 170mm