Assalamualaikum and hi. I know you've seen the picture above right? It is last year science book for form 2 (2011). Today I'm not talking about the Science Process Skill (SPS), but I want to share about the animal on the cover. It is a leafy sea dragon or also known as Glauert's seadragon and leafies. It is found along the southern and western coast of Australia. The name is derived from it's appearance, with long leaf-like protrusions coming all over the body.
The male sea dragon cares for the eggs. The female produces up to 250 pink eggs, then deposits them on to the male's tail by a long tube. The eggs then attach themselves to a brood patch, which supplies oxygen to them. It takes a total of nine weeks for the eggs to begin to hatch, depends on the water conditions. On this period, the eggs turn orange or ripe purple, after which the male pumps its tail until the infants emerge, this process take about 24-48 hours. The male aids in the babies hatching by shaking his tail, and rubbing it against seaweed and rocks.Once born, the infant sea dragon is completely independent.
Leafy sea dragons are subject to many threats, both natural and man-made. They are caught by collectors, and used in alternative medicine. They are vulnerable when first born, and are slow swimmers, reducing their chance of escaping form a predator. Sea dragons are often washed ashore after storms, sea dragons cannot curl their tail and hold onto sea grass to stay safe. They have become endangered through pollution and industrial runoff as well as collection by fascinated divers who are entranced by their unique appearance. In response to these dangers they have been officially protected by the Federal Government of Australia.
| leafy sea dragon's eggs on the males tails |
I end my post here,
Assalamualaikum and bye.
credit to --> wikipedia
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the egg is eww ! bTw , cool blog .
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