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| Guadalupe fur seals, floating upside down underwater over a rocky reef covered with golden kelp at Guadalupe Island. Image ID: 02113 Species: Guadalupe fur seal, Arctocephalus townsendi Location: Guadalupe Island (Isla Guadalupe), Baja California, Mexico | Galapagos shark swims over a reef in the Galapagos Islands, with schooling fish in the distance. Image ID: 16240 Species: Galapagos shark, Carcharhinus galapagensis Location: Wolf Island, Galapagos Islands, Ecuador | Scalloped hammerhead shark swims over a reef in the Galapagos Islands. The hammerheads eyes and other sensor organs are placed far apart on its wide head to give the shark greater ability to sense the location of prey. Image ID: 16246 Species: Scalloped hammerhead shark, Sphyrna lewini Location: Wolf Island, Galapagos Islands, Ecuador |
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| California sea lions swim and socialize over a kelp-covered rocky reef, underwater at San Clemente Island in California's southern Channel Islands. Image ID: 02158 Species: California sea lion, Zalophus californianus Location: San Clemente Island, California, USA | A SCUBA diver swimming over a rocky reef covered with kelp, watches a brightly colored orange garibaldi fish. Image ID: 01113 Species: Garibaldi, Hypsypops rubicundus Location: San Clemente Island, California, USA | Surf grass on the rocky reef -- appearing blurred in this time exposure -- is tossed back and forth by powerful ocean waves passing by above. San Clemente Island. Image ID: 10237 Species: Surfgrass, Phyllospadix Location: San Clemente Island, California, USA |
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| Hawaiian spinner dolphin, resting herd swimming along reef. Image ID: 00108 Species: Hawaiian spinner dolphin, Stenella longirostris Location: Lanai, Hawaii, USA | Caribbean reef shark, ampullae of Lorenzini visible on snout. Image ID: 10550 Species: Caribbean reef shark, Carcharhinus perezi Location: Bahamas | Bryozoan grows on a red gorgonian on rocky reef, below kelp forest, underwater. The red gorgonian is a filter-feeding temperate colonial species that lives on the rocky bottom at depths between 50 to 200 feet deep. Gorgonians are oriented at right angles to prevailing water currents to capture plankton drifting by. Image ID: 25395 Species: Red gorgonian, Lophogorgia chilensis Location: San Clemente Island, California, USA |
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| Red gorgonian on rocky reef, below kelp forest, underwater. The red gorgonian is a filter-feeding temperate colonial species that lives on the rocky bottom at depths between 50 to 200 feet deep. Gorgonians are oriented at right angles to prevailing water currents to capture plankton drifting by. Image ID: 25393 Species: Red gorgonian, Lophogorgia chilensis Location: San Clemente Island, California, USA | California sea lions swim and socialize over a kelp-covered rocky reef, underwater at San Clemente Island in California's southern Channel Islands. Image ID: 02031 Species: California sea lion, Zalophus californianus Location: San Clemente Island, California, USA | California sea lions swim and socialize over a kelp-covered rocky reef, underwater at San Clemente Island in California's southern Channel Islands. Image ID: 02159 Species: California sea lion, Zalophus californianus Location: San Clemente Island, California, USA |
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| Red gorgonian on rocky reef, below kelp forest, underwater. The red gorgonian is a filter-feeding temperate colonial species that lives on the rocky bottom at depths between 50 to 200 feet deep. Gorgonians are oriented at right angles to prevailing water currents to capture plankton drifting by. Image ID: 25394 Species: Red gorgonian, Lophogorgia chilensis Location: San Clemente Island, California, USA | Reef with gorgonians and marine invertebrates, Sea of Cortez, Baja California, Mexico. Image ID: 27510 Location: Sea of Cortez, Baja California, Mexico | A leopard shark, swimming through the shallows waters of a California reef, underwater. Image ID: 25417 Species: Leopard shark, Triakis semifasciata Location: San Clemente Island, California, USA |
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| Marine iguana, underwater, forages for green algae that grows on the lava reef. Image ID: 16227 Species: Marine iguana, Amblyrhynchus cristatus Location: Bartolome Island, Galapagos Islands, Ecuador | Crevice rockfish. Seldom seen, kelpfish hover among the seaweeds in wave swept tidepools and reefs. These secretive fish rapidly change color to match watever background they are near. This kelpfish has assumed the coloration of the blade of kelp it is resting on. Image ID: 13711 Species: Crevice rockfish, Gibbonsia montereyensis Location: Monterey, California, USA | Red gorgonian on rocky reef, below kelp forest, underwater. The red gorgonian is a filter-feeding temperate colonial species that lives on the rocky bottom at depths between 50 to 200 feet deep. Gorgonians are oriented at right angles to prevailing water currents to capture plankton drifting by. Image ID: 23420 Species: Red gorgonian, Lophogorgia chilensis, Macrocystis pyrifera Location: San Clemente Island, California, USA |
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| California golden gorgonian and small juvenile sheephead fishes on rocky reef, below kelp forest, underwater. The golden gorgonian is a filter-feeding temperate colonial species that lives on the rocky bottom at depths between 50 to 200 feet deep. Each individual polyp is a distinct animal, together they secrete calcium that forms the structure of the colony. Gorgonians are oriented at right angles to prevailing water currents to capture plankton drifting by. Image ID: 23421 Species: California golden gorgonian, Muricea californica, Semicossyphus pulcher Location: San Clemente Island, California, USA | Red gorgonian on rocky reef, below kelp forest, underwater. The red gorgonian is a filter-feeding temperate colonial species that lives on the rocky bottom at depths between 50 to 200 feet deep. Gorgonians are oriented at right angles to prevailing water currents to capture plankton drifting by. Image ID: 23425 Species: Red gorgonian, Lophogorgia chilensis Location: San Clemente Island, California, USA | Giant kelp plants lean over in ocean currents, underwater. Individual kelp plants grow from the rocky reef, to which they are attached, up to the ocean surface and form a vibrant community in which fishes, mammals and invertebrates thrive. Image ID: 23426 Species: Giant kelp, Macrocystis pyrifera Location: San Clemente Island, California, USA |
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| A kelp forest. Giant kelp grows rapidly, up to 2' per day, from the rocky reef on the ocean bottom to which it is anchored, toward the ocean surface where it spreads to form a thick canopy. Myriad species of fishes, mammals and invertebrates form a rich community in the kelp forest. Lush forests of kelp are found through California's Southern Channel Islands. Image ID: 23428 Species: Giant kelp, Macrocystis pyrifera Location: San Clemente Island, California, USA | Red gorgonian on rocky reef, below kelp forest, underwater. The red gorgonian is a filter-feeding temperate colonial species that lives on the rocky bottom at depths between 50 to 200 feet deep. Gorgonians are oriented at right angles to prevailing water currents to capture plankton drifting by. Image ID: 23431 Species: Red gorgonian, Lophogorgia chilensis, Macrocystis pyrifera Location: San Clemente Island, California, USA | California golden gorgonian on rocky reef, underwater. The golden gorgonian is a filter-feeding temperate colonial species that lives on the rocky bottom at depths between 50 to 200 feet deep. Each individual polyp is a distinct animal, together they secrete calcium that forms the structure of the colony. Gorgonians are oriented at right angles to prevailing water currents to capture plankton drifting by. Image ID: 25397 Species: California golden gorgonian, Muricea californica Location: San Clemente Island, California, USA |
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| Brown gorgonians on rocky reef, below kelp forest, underwater. Gorgonians are filter-feeding temperate colonial species that live on the rocky bottom at depths between 50 to 200 feet deep. Each individual polyp is a distinct animal, together they secrete calcium that forms the structure of the colony. Gorgonians are oriented at right angles to prevailing water currents to capture plankton drifting by. Image ID: 25398 Species: Brown gorgonian, Muricea fruticosa Location: San Clemente Island, California, USA | A view of an underwater forest of giant kelp. Giant kelp grows rapidly, up to 2' per day, from the rocky reef on the ocean bottom to which it is anchored, toward the ocean surface where it spreads to form a thick canopy. Myriad species of fishes, mammals and invertebrates form a rich community in the kelp forest. Lush forests of kelp are found through California's Southern Channel Islands. Image ID: 25400 Species: Giant kelp, Macrocystis pyrifera Location: San Clemente Island, California, USA | Red gorgonian on rocky reef, below kelp forest, underwater. The red gorgonian is a filter-feeding temperate colonial species that lives on the rocky bottom at depths between 50 to 200 feet deep. Gorgonians are oriented at right angles to prevailing water currents to capture plankton drifting by. Image ID: 25406 Species: Red gorgonian, Lophogorgia chilensis Location: San Clemente Island, California, USA |
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| Red gorgonian on rocky reef, below kelp forest, underwater. The red gorgonian is a filter-feeding temperate colonial species that lives on the rocky bottom at depths between 50 to 200 feet deep. Gorgonians are oriented at right angles to prevailing water currents to capture plankton drifting by. Image ID: 25407 Species: Red gorgonian, Lophogorgia chilensis Location: San Clemente Island, California, USA | Garibaldi fish on kelp forest reef, underwater. Image ID: 25409 Species: Garibaldi, Hypsypops rubicundus Location: San Clemente Island, California, USA | A giant sea star, or starfish, on a rocky reef underwater. Image ID: 25410 Species: Giant sea star, Pisaster giganteus Location: San Clemente Island, California, USA |
Natural History Photography Blog posts (20) related to Reef
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