Merry Christmas & A Happy New Year 2020
Merry Christmas & A Happy New Year 2020 Wishing you all the best ! Happy Holidays from the Atlantis Gozo Team The photo of this Tethys fimbria was taken by Brian Azzopardi at Il-Kantra Ta’ Cenc on Gozo’s south coast.
Smittina cervicornis (Staghorn Rose Coral)
Smittina cervicornis, known as Staghorn Rose Coral, is one of the oldest known species of Bryozoan. This narrow-branched adeoniform ascophoran is distributed in the Atlantic Ocean from Brittany to the south-east African region and throughout the Mediterranean Sea. The genus Smittina belongs to the family Smittinidae, superfamily Smittinoidea, suborder Ascophora, order Cheilostomata, class Gymnolaemata, phylum […]
Thuridilla hopei (Hope’s Elysia)
Thuridilla hopei, the Hope’s Elysia, is a species of sacoglossan sea slug, a shell-less marine opisthobranch gastropod mollusk endemic to the Mediterranean Sea. Although it usually only occurs in the Mediterranean, it has also been spotted in the Red Sea. In fact, this would not be the first species that crossed the border between these […]
Pinna rudis (Rough Pen Shell)
Pinna rudis, the Rough Pen Shell (a.k.a. Spiny Fan-Mussel or the Maltese common name Nakkra tax-Xewk), is a species of Mediterranean clam, a marine bivalve mollusc in the family Pinnidae, the pen shells. The Rough Pen Shell is found in the seas around Malta in the Mediterranean Sea, and connecting parts of the Black Sea […]
Dromia personata (Sleepy Crab)
Dromia personata, the Sleepy Crab (a.k.a. Porter Crab or Sponge Crab), is a species of crab found in the North Sea, the seas around Malta in the Mediterranean Sea, and connecting parts of the north-eastern Atlantic Ocean. Its slow movements are the origin of its name “sleepy”. The genus Dromia belongs to the family Dromiidae, […]
Pinna nobilis (Fan Mussel)
Pinna nobilis, the Fan Mussel (a.k.a. Noble Pen Shell or Nakkra in Maltese), is a large species of Mediterranean clam, a marine bivalve mollusc in the family Pinnidae, the pen shells. The Noble Pen Shell is an emblematic endemic species to the Mediterranean Sea, where it lives offshore at depths ranging between 0.5 and 60 metres. […]
Ophioderma longicauda (Smooth Brittle Star)
Ophioderma longicauda, the Smooth Brittle Star (a.k.a. Snake Brittle Star or Brown Brittle Star), is a type of Brittle Star. These are echinoderms in the class Ophiuroidea closely related to starfish. Brittle Stars or ophiuroids crawl across the sea floor using their flexible arms for locomotion. The ophiuroids generally have five long, slender, whip-like arms […]
Salpa maxima (Big Salp)
Salpa maxima, the Big Salp (a.k.a. Salp, plural Salps), is a barrel-shaped, planktonic tunicate. It moves by contracting, thus pumping water through its gelatinous body, one of the most efficient examples of jet propulsion in the animal kingdom. The Big Salp strains the pumped water through its internal feeding filters, feeding on phytoplankton. Salps are […]
Sphaerechinus granularis (Violet Sea Urchin)
Sphaerechinus granularis, the Violet Sea Urchin (a.k.a. Purple Sea Urchin), is a species of sea urchin in the order Camarodonta. Its range includes the Mediterranean Sea and eastern Atlantic Ocean. The fossil record shows that camarodonts have been in existence since the Lower Cretaceous. The genus Sphaerechinus belongs to the family Toxopneustidae, order Temnopleuroida, Superorder […]
Dentex dentex (Common Dentex)
Dentex dentex, the Common Dentex, is a species of fish in the Sparids family, commonly called sea breams and porgies. Dentex dentex is common in the Mediterranean Sea, but also seen in the Black Sea and the Eastern Atlantic Ocean. Both the genus and species Latin names Dentex are related to dentēs which means “teeth”. […]
