Common pandora - Pagellus erythrinus (Linnaeus, 1758) Λυθρίνι,(Juvenile) - Cyprus

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All about Cyprus - Όλα για την Κύπρο

The common pandora (Pagellus erythrinus) is a fish of the sea bream family, Sparidae. It is a popular food fish in Mediterranean countries, with delicate white flesh.

It has a slim, oval fusiform body, with a smallish mouth and scales covering its face. The eyes are smaller than those of Pagellus bogaraveo and Pagellus acarne. It is silver in colour with a pink tinge, particularly on its back. A typical specimen measures 10–30 cm, but it can reach as much as 50 cm in length.

The common pandora is a protogynous sequential hermaphrodite, spending the first two years of its life as a female, and the third year as a male. It is omnivorous, but mainly feeds on smaller fish and benthic invertebrates. As most fishes, the common pandora harbours a variety of parasites; for example, the nematode Philometra filiformis is a parasite of the ovary of this fish.

Distribution

The fish is found along the eastern shores of the Atlantic Ocean, from Scandinavia to Cape Verde, as well as the Mediterranean and the North Sea. In terms of genetic diversity, there appears to be a high level of connectivity from the Atlantic through the Mediterranean. From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common_pandora

Cape Greco, 6mts deep,19.06.2022- Underwater photos  by Costas Constantinou

White-spotted puffer fish - Arothron hispidus (Linnaeus, 1758) - Cyprus

 See also

Lagocephalus sceleratus (Gmelin, 1789) - Λαγοκέφαλος - Cyprus

All about Cyprus - Όλα για την Κύπρο

First confirmed record of the white-spotted puffer Arothron hispidus (Linnaeus, 1758)

in the Mediterranean Sea' by Costas Constantinou

The white-spotted puffer fish (Arothron hispidus) is a medium to large-sized puffer fish, it can reach 50 cm length. It is light grey in color, or greyish or yellowish, and clearly covered with more or less regular white points, that become concentric contrasting white and dark grey lines that radiate around the eyes and pectoral fins. The ventral part is white. The "shoulder" (around the pectoral fins) is dark. It also has concentric contrasting white and dark grey lines that radiate around the eyes and pectoral fins. The white spotted puffer fish is poisonous.

Its distribution extends through the Indo-Pacific area, Red Sea included, to the eastern Pacific Ocean. A confirmed record was reported recently from the eastern Mediterranean Sea off Cyprus. It can be found at depths of three to 35 metres. Its habitat types include reefs, lagoons, estuaries, and tidepools. Its diet includes calcareous or coralline algae, molluscs, tunicates, sponges, corals, zoanthids, crabs, polychaetes, starfish, urchins, krill, and silversides.

The adult is nocturnal and solitary. It is territorial, becoming somewhat aggressive. From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White-spotted_puffer

Cavo Greco, 02.02.2018 - Underwater photos  by Costas Constantinou

Orange gumdrop - Berthellina citrina (Ruppell & Leuckart, 1828) - Cyprus

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All about Cyprus - Όλα για την Κύπρο

Berthellina citrina, the orange gumdrop, is a species of sea slug in the family Pleurobranchidae. It is found in rock pools in the intertidal zone and in shallow water in the tropical and subtropical Indo-Pacific region.

Description

Berthellina citrina grows to a maximum length of about 3 cm (1.2 in) and has a broadly ovate body. It varies in colour from a translucent pale yellow to a brick red. The head bears a triangular oral veil with a ventral groove, and a pair of rhinophores rolled into tubes. The surface of the mantle is studded with small white glands which produce a distasteful whitish secretion. The remnants of the shell are embedded in the mantle and the gut is visible through the overlying tissues. There is a single gill located in a gap between the mantle and the foot on the right-hand side, with around twenty pectinate lamellae on each side.

Distribution and habitat

Berthellina citrina is a common species found throughout the tropical and subtropical Indo-Pacific, and as far south as New Zealand. As well as being found in rock pools, it occurs on reefs and among boulders in the shallow subtidal zone, and down to a maximum depth of 150 m (500 ft). It is nocturnal and hides in crevices and under rocks during the day.

Ecology

Sea slugs in this family mostly feed on sponges, and Berthellina citrina is no exception. In Hawaii, however, it has been observed feeding on the corals Tubastrea coccinea, Leptastrea sp. and Porites lobata, and it also consumes detritus. The glandular secretion is released when the mantle surface is stimulated and is acidic, containing chlorine and sulphate ions. It is used as a defence against predators, and in laboratory experiments repelled sea anemones, fish, and crustaceans. Sea slugs in the Pleurobranchidae are hermaphrodites. The eggs are laid in an orange spiral jelly-like egg ribbon.

From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Berthellina_citrina

Protaras, 15mts deep First time recorded in Cyprus. July 2019 - Underwater photos  by Costas Constantinou

Dwarf sea hare or pygmy sea hare - Aplysia parvula Guilding in Mørch, 1863 - Cyprus

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All about Cyprus - Όλα για την Κύπρο

The dwarf sea hare or pygmy sea hare, Aplysia parvula, is a species of sea hare, a marine gastropod mollusc in the family Aplysiidae.

Distribution

Aplysia parvula was long seen as a circumtropical sea hare species, but Golestani et al. (2019) restricted the name A. parvula to the population from tropical waters in the northwest Atlantic, while resurrecting A. elongata, A. japonica, A. atromarginata, and A. nigrocincta for populations from the Indo-Pacific and describing the new species A. ghanimii and A. hooveri for populations from the eastern Pacific. The type locality of Aplysia parvula is Saint Vincent, Lesser Antilles.

Description

The dwarf sea hare is round-bodied and smooth-skinned with a slender head bearing extensions which resemble rabbit ears. There are wing-like flaps (parapodia) extending from the body, which is brown to maroon or olive green in colour and may be covered with clusters of white spots.

The maximum recorded length for this animal is 60 mm.

Ecology

The minimum recorded depth for this species is 0.5 m; maximum recorded depth is 30 m.[5] It usually occurs in less than 5 m of water, but is occasionally found in water as deep as 24 m.[6]

The species is a herbivore, and feeds on different types of algae. Its egg mass is a tangled mass of sticky orange, green or brown strings found under rocks or among algae. From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dwarf_sea_hare

Protaras 4m deep, 04.05.2022- Underwater photos  by Costas Constantinou

Long-snouted seahorse - Hippocampus guttulatus (G. Cuvier, 1829) - Cyprus

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Short-snouted seahorse (Hippocampus hippocampus) (Linnaeus, 1758) - Ιππόκαμπος ο βραχύραμφος

All about Cyprus - Όλα για την Κύπρο

Hippocampus guttulatus, commonly known as the long-snouted seahorse and in Great Britain as the spiny seahorse, is a marine fish belonging to the family Syngnathidae, native from the northeast Atlantic, including the Mediterranean.

Synonyms

H. hippocampus microstephanus Slastenenko 1937; H. hippocampus microcoronatus Slastenenko 1938; H. guttulatus multiannularis Ginsburg 1937; H biscuspis Kaup 1856.

Description

The long-snouted seahorse is a small-sized fish that can reach a maximum length of 21.5 cm (8+1⁄2 in), but the average size is more or less 12 cm (5 in). The body is slender, the snout is long and the tail is prehensile. Its head and dorsal ridge have often some more or less long and numerous dermal filaments which can be simple or bifid. Its color ranges from dark green to different variants of brown to yellow, and the body is often speckled with small white dots.

Distribution and habitat

The long-snouted seahorse is widespread throughout the temperate waters of the eastern Atlantic Ocean from the south coast of the United Kingdom to the Netherlands and south to Morocco, including the Canary Islands, the Azores and Madeira, and the Mediterranean Sea. Along the south coast of England and south-west Wales at depths of 1-20 , specially in eelgrass meadows, clinging by the tail or swimming upright.

The longsnout seahorse ranges from black to yellow, red, orange and brown with multiple white dots usually on the tail.

This seahorse likes shallow coastal waters from 1 to 20 m (3 to 66 ft) deep. It occurs close by Posidonia and eelgrass meadows or in mixed habitat with sandy bottom and rocks with algae.

Biology

The long-snouted seahorse has a carnivorous diet and feeds on small crustaceans, larvae, fish eggs and other planktonic organisms. It is ovoviviparous and it is the male who broods the eggs in its ventral brood pouch. The latter includes villi rich in capillaries that surround each fertilized egg, creating a sort of placenta supplying the embryos. When fully grown, the young, called fry, will be expelled from the pocket and mature in complete autonomy. Many seahorse species are monogamous as mating occurs between the same two partners in one breeding season. However, the mating habits for H. guttulatus are unknown. An interesting aspect of seahorse coloration is the ability to rapidly transform color patterns to blend with their immediate surroundings. They swim upright and avoid predators by mimicking the colour of underwater plants.

Conservation status

The long-snouted seahorse is relatively rare, and limited data exist on its population and about the volume and the impact of trade for traditional Chinese medicine and for the aquarium. The species is therefore considered as "Data Deficient" on the IUCN Red List. Internationally, it is also listed in Appendix II of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). This means that it is on the list of species not necessarily threatened with extinction, but for which trade must be controlled in order to avoid utilization incompatible with their survival. From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Long-snouted_seahorse

10mts deep,Cape Greco,13.08.2023 - Underwater photos  by Costas Constantinou

Sargassum nudibranch - Scyllaea pelagica Linnaeus, 1758 - Cyprus

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All about Cyprus - Όλα για την Κύπρο

First record of the uncommon Scyllaea pelagica ,in Cyprus , 6m deep, 27.08.2021 by Costas Constantinou

Scyllaea pelagica, common name the sargassum nudibranch, is a species of nudibranch, a marine gastropod mollusc in the family Scyllaeidae. This species lives among floating seaweed in the world's oceans, feeding on hydroids.

Description

Scyllaea pelagica is a sturdy nudibranch that grows to a length of about 10 cm (4 in). It is dorso-ventrally flattened. At the anterior end there are two pairs of sensory tentacles and a pair of rhinophores enclosed in large rhinophore sheaths. On the sides of the body are two pairs of irregular lobes with toothed edges and squared ends known as cerata. The inner surfaces of these bear numerous small gills. At the posterior end of the body there is a flattened dorsal crest. The skin is smooth except for a few conical tubercles. The colour is a dull yellowish-brown or greenish-brown with some small white markings. Sometimes there is a row of tiny bright blue spots along each side.

Distribution

Scyllaea pelagica occurs globally in pantropical oceans among floating masses of weed. It is especially common in the Caribbean area and Gulf of Mexico and it often gets washed up onto the beach with seaweed after storms.

Biology

Scyllaea pelagica is nearly always a pelagic species but is occasionally found on brown seaweed anchored to the seabed. It spends its life among sargasso weed (Sargassum spp.) floating in tropical seas where it is well camouflaged. It feeds by grazing on the hydroids that grow on the weed and if it gets detached from the fronds can swim to a limited extent by flexing its body.

Scyllaea pelagica is a hermaphrodite. Two individuals come together to exchange sperm through their genital openings and fertilisation is internal. The eggs are laid in a jelly coated mass on the weed and the trochophore larvae are planktonic.[3] Studies using radioactive carbon labelling have shown that in nutrient-poor waters such as the Sargasso Sea, the larvae of Scyllaea pelagica can directly incorporate into their epidermis and cerata, amino acids that have been added to the water. Πηγή https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scyllaea_pelagica

Underwater photos  by Costas Constantinou

Cuvier's beaked whale or ziphius - Ziphius cavirostris Cuvier, 1823 - Ζιφιός - Cyprus

See also

Λίστα των θηλαστικών της Κύπρου - List of mammals of Cyprus

Family: Ziphiidae

The Cuvier's beaked whale, goose-beaked whale, or ziphius (Ziphius cavirostris) is the most widely distributed of all beaked whales in the family Ziphiidae. It is smaller than most baleen whales yet large among beaked whales. Cuvier's beaked whale is pelagic, inhabiting waters deeper than 300 m (1,000 ft). It has the deepest and longest recorded dives among whales at 2,992 m (9,816 ft) and 222 minutes, though the frequency and reasons for these extraordinary dives are unclear. Despite its deep-water habitat, it is one of the most frequently spotted beaked whales.

The species was named Ziphius cavirostris by Georges Cuvier, based on a skull fragment which he believed to be a fossil from an extinct species. He reused the genus name Ziphius from an undetermined species mentioned by historical sources. The species name cavirostris, from Latin cavus "hollow" and rostrum "beak", refers to a bony structure (cavity) anterior of the nares (the bones of the nose), now known as the prenarial basin. It is now known to be unique to males of this species.. From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

                                  Photo  Limnitis 9/2/2023 by Demetris Kolokotronis

 Unprecedented number of whales found beached in Paphos - 9/2/2023

Beached Cuvier’s beaked whales, also known as goose-beaked whales, or ziphius (Ziphius cavirostris) were found in various Paphos locations over the past two days but all, even those helped back into the water have died, it emerged on Friday.

The department of fisheries announced 5 sightings on Thursday, one at Gialia, one at Argaka, two near Polis.and one at Limnitis. 

Locals who first found the whales notified the authorities, and then attempted to rescue the animals, managing to push three, which were found alive, back into sea and the animals appeared to take off, mayor of Argaka, Spyros Pelopida, told the Cyprus Mail.

Spokesman for the marine research department Lavrentis Vassiliades, told Cyprus Mail that by Friday morning two more sightings had occurred, between Polis and Pachyammos, bringing the total number up to 7. Sadly, all the whales, even those which had been pushed back into the water, were later found beached and dead.

This is the first recorded instance of such a large number of whales beaching in Cyprus, Vassiliades said, although there were a couple of isolated incidents in the past, with one recorded last year in Mandria. Meanwhile, there have also been reports of three whale sightings in the north.

The fisheries research team collected autopsy samples from the carcasses on Friday, some of which are to be sent abroad, to determine the exact causes of the whale’s deaths, Vassiliades said, but could not say when results would be returned.

The beaching may have happened as a result of seismic vibrations from the recent earthquake in Turkey, shock waves from military exercises, or noise from exploratory seabed drilling, all of which can cause stress and disorientation to cetaceans which rely largely on their sense of hearing and communicate with each through high-frequency echolocation.

The mayor of Argaka, where two of the whales were found, said the attempted rescue by locals shows that the area’s residents are sensitive to sea animals and want to protect their region’s biodiversity.

A video posted to a group dedicated to recording and preserving the island’s biodiversity, showed a young men from the area pushing one whale back into the sea, in cold and rough-water conditions.

The group stayed at the beach for hours at night, to watch for any more whales, the mayor said.

Anything immediate, relating to the region’s animals or nature, has to be done by the locals, the region’s youth volunteers and local leaders,” the mayor said pointedly, adding that official state authorities are not as reliable or as intimately involved.

Cuvier’s whales are smaller than most baleen whales but large for beaked whales, usually inhabiting waters deeper than 300 m. They have the deepest and longest recorded dives among whales. Despite their deep-water habitat, they are among the most frequently spotted beached whales, possibly due to being even more sensitive to sonar than other types of whale species..From  Cyprus Mail

                                  Photos  Limnitis 9/2/2023 by Demetris Kolokotronis

Pennaria disticha Goldfuss, 1820[. - Cyprus

Pennaria disticha is a species of athecate hydroid in the family Pennariidae. Colonies are common in the Mediterranean Sea growing on rocks close to the surface. This species has been used in research into prey capture
Colonies of Pennaria disticha consist of numerous much-branched stems up to 30 cm (12 in) high. The branching system is alternate. The polyps are tiny and are supported by a hydrocaulus, a fairly stiff hollow tube with a perisarc (sheath) made of chitin and protein. This is dark brown or blackish, but is often colonised by algae and diatoms giving it a muddy appearance. The whitish polyps are tinged with red. Each polyp has ten to eighteen slender, filiform tentacles at its base and up to twelve tentacles with knobbed tips surrounding its terminal mouth
Pennaria disticha probably originated in the western Atlantic Ocean but has spread and now is widely distributed in warm waters throughout the world. It was first detected in Hawaii in 1928. It is found in shallow water attached to hard surfaces, on both rocks and man-made structures, in locations with some water movement. On reefs, it tends to be in less-exposed positions and in crevices. This hydrozoan forms part of the community of organisms known as the fouling community, and has spread around the world as a result of man's maritime activities
The polyps of Pennaria disticha spread out their tentacles to catch any small zooplankton that float by. The prey is often captured and immobilised by nematocysts on the threadlike tentacles at the base of the polyp. The crown bends over to receive the item, which is then killed by the more powerful nematocysts at the tip of the crown tentacles and thrust into the mouth.[5]

The colony grows by budding, during which process new feeding polyps are formed. Reproduction is by the budding of reproductive polyps known as gonophores, the medusa stage in the life cycle. Gonophores may remain attached to the parent colony, but usually become detached. Each colony produces gonophores of one sex. Male gonophores soon eject white sperm into the water and females emit up to six eggs. After fertilisation, each embryo develops within a day or so into a free-swimming planula larva. After drifting with the plankton for some time, this finds a suitable hard surface on which to settle and start a new colony.
It has been reported that an acute, painful dermatitis occurred in several people who came into contact with a rope on which Pennaria disticha was growing as a fouling organism
From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pennaria_disticha

Underwater photos  2mts deep,Xylophagou 16.06.2018  by Costas Constantinou

Eudendrium racemosum (Cavolini, 1785) - Cyprus

Eudendrium racemosum is a marine species of cnidaria, a hydroid (Hydrozoa) in the family Eudendriidae. It was described by Cavolini in 1785.

Underwater photos  by Costas Constantinou

Mediterranean barracuda - Sphyraena sphyraena (Linnaeus, 1758) Λούτσος, Σφύραινα, Σφύρνα - Cyprus

Sphyraena sphyraena, the European barracuda or Mediterranean barracuda, is a ray-finned predatory fish of the Mediterranean basin and the warmer waters of the Atlantic Ocean.

Sphyraena sphyraena has a long, fairly compressed body with a cylindrical cross section which is covered with small, cycloid scales. It has a large mouth with a projecting lower jaw, the jaws are lined with prominent sharp teeth. It is dark above and silvery below and in some freshly caught specimens there is a yellow band running parallel to the lateral line. It has 20 or 22 dark transverse bands on the back which do not reach the flanks. The anterior dorsal fin has 5 spiny rays and the posterior has a single spiny ray and 9 soft rays, it has relatively small pectoral fins and the pelvic fins are directly below the most forward point of the first dorsal fin; The anal fin has a one spiny ray and 9 soft rays. S. sphyraena has scales covering both the anterior and posterior margins of the preoperculum, whereas in Sphyraena viridensis both margins have no scales. They are normally around 30–60 cm in length and weigh 6 kg but there are records of fish 165 cm long and reaching weights of 12 kg or more. It is the largest species of barracuda in the Mediterranean

In the Eastern Atlantic Sphyraena sphyraena is found from the Bay of Biscay in the north through the Canary Islands and the Azores to Mossamedes, Angola in the south and is found off Bermuda and Brazil in the western Atlantic. It is also found throughout the Mediterranean Sea and the Black Sea. It has been found as far north as Cornwall in the United Kingdom.

Sphyraena sphyraena is normally a pelagic species found high in the water column, but smaller fish often found near bottom of the water column. The main food is other fish but sometimes includes cephalopods and crustaceans. They are a social species and large groups of Sphyraena sphyraena numbering between ten and two hundred have been recorded.[9] Reproduction occurs between May and August and the female can lay up to 300,000 eggs. The copepod Bomolochus unicirrus is known to be an ectoparasite of S. sphyraena.

It is caught in some quantities by commercial fisheries and it is an important game fish. A decline in mean size and in the range of sizes caught has been noted in the eastern and southern Mediterranean and this may be an indication of over exploitation. Juvenile S.sphyraena are taken as bycatch in fisheries small forage fish, such as sardines and anchovies, while the rather sedentary adults are vulnerable to other fishing pressures, including spearfishing.
From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sphyraena_sphyraena

Underwater photos  by Costas Constantinou

Tusk shells - Dentalium sp. - Cyprus

Family Dentaliidae

Dentalium is a large genus of tooth shells or tusk shells, marine scaphopod molluscs in the family Dentaliidae. The genus contains 50 described species and about 50 extinct species

The scientific name of this genus comes from the Latin word dentis, meaning tooth, based on the tooth or tusk-shaped form of these molluscs.

The mantle of Dentalium species is entirely within the shell. The foot extends from the larger end of the shell, and is used to burrow through the substrate. They position their head down in the substrate, with the apical end of the shell (at the rear of the animal's body) projecting up into the water. These molluscs live on seafloor sediment, feeding on microscopic organisms, detritus and foraminiferans.

The shells are conical and curved in a planispiral way, and they are usually whitish in color. Because of these characteristics, the shell somewhat resembles a miniature elephant's tusk. They are hollow and open at both ends; the opening at the larger end is the main or anterior aperture of the shell. The smaller opening is known as the apical aperture.

The shells of Dentalium neohexagonum are known to have been used by the Chumash people as a form of currency at least as early as circa 1000 AD, in the Morro Bay area

In pre-modern medicine, these shells were considered an excellent alkali, and apothecaries would pulverize them for use in several preparations. The shell used for this purpose was described by Joseph Pitton de Tournefort in London in the 18th century as being "of a tubular, or conical form, about 3 inches long; of a shining, greenish white; hollow; light, and divided lengthwise by parallel lines, running from top to bottom. It is about the thickness of a feather, and bears some resemblance to a canine tooth." However, it was considered at that time to be very rare, and in lieu of that, another shell was usually substituted. This was described as a multi-colored shell found in the sand where the tide had fallen; this shell was not channeled, or fluted. The large green shell to which the writer first refers must have been either Dentalium elephantinum or Dentalium aprinum, both of which are large and greenish, and live in the Indo-Pacific zone. The other shell was presumably another species, possibly Dentalium entale, which is native to Great Britain.
From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dentalium_(genus)

 Photos  by Kostas Aristeidou

Shamefaced Crab - Calappa granulata (Linnaeus, 1767) - Cyprus

Calappa is a genus of crabs known commonly as box crabs or shame-faced crabs. The name box crab comes from their distinctly bulky carapace, and the name shame-faced is from anthropomorphising the way the crab's chelae (claws) fold up and cover its face, as if it were hiding its face in shame.

 Photos  by Kostas Aristeidou

Risso's dolphin - Grampus griseus (G. Cuvier, 1812) - Γράμπος - Potamos Liopetriou - 2/8/2013 - Cyprus

See also

Λίστα των θηλαστικών της Κύπρου - List of mammals of Cyprus

Family: Delphinidae

Risso's dolphin (Grampus griseus) is the only species of dolphin in the genus Grampus. It is commonly known as the Monk dolphin among Taiwanese fishermen. Some of the closest related species to these dolphins include: pilot whales (Globicephala spp.), pygmy killer whales (Feresa attenuata), melon-headed whales (Peponocephala electra), and false killer whales (Pseudorca crassidens)

Risso's dolphin is named after Antoine Risso, whose description formed the basis of the first public description of the animal, by Georges Cuvier, in 1812. Another common name for the Risso's dolphin is grampus (also the species' genus), although this common name was more often used for the orca. The etymology of the word "grampus" is unclear. It may be an agglomeration of the Latin grandis piscis or French grand poisson, both meaning big fish. The specific epithet griseus refers to the mottled (almost scarred) grey colour of its body.
Risso's dolphin has a relatively large anterior body and dorsal fin, while the posterior tapers to a relatively narrow tail. The bulbous head has a vertical crease in front.

Infants are dorsally grey to brown and ventrally cream-colored, with a white anchor-shaped area between the pectorals and around the mouth. In older calves, the nonwhite areas darken to nearly black, and then lighten (except for the always dark dorsal fin). Linear scars mostly from social interaction eventually cover the bulk of the body. Older individuals appear mostly white. Most individuals have two to seven pairs of teeth, all in the lower jaw.

Length is typically 10 feet (3.0 m), although specimens may reach 13.12 feet (4.00 m). Like most dolphins, males are typically slightly larger than females. This species weighs 300–500 kilograms (660–1,100 lb), making it the largest species called "dolphin"

They are found worldwide in temperate and tropical waters, usually in deep waters rather, but close to land. As well as the tropical parts of the Indian, Pacific and Atlantic Oceans, they are also found in the Persian Gulf and Mediterranean and Red Seas, but not the Black Sea (a stranding was recorded in the Sea of Marmara in 2012[9]). They range as far north as the Gulf of Alaska and southern Greenland and as far south as Tierra del Fuego.

Their preferred environment is just off the continental shelf on steep banks, with water depths varying from 400–1,000 m (1,300–3,300 ft) and water temperatures at least 10 °C (50 °F) and preferably 15–20 °C (59–68 °F).

The population around the continental shelf of the United States is estimated[by whom?] to be in excess of 60,000. In the Pacific, a census[which?] recorded 175,000 individuals in eastern tropical waters and 85,000 in the west. No global estimate exists.

They feed almost exclusively on neritic and oceanic squid, mostly nocturnally. Predation does not appear significant. Mass strandings are infrequent. Analysis carried out on the stomach contents of stranded specimens in Scotland showed that the most important species preyed on in Scottish waters is the curled octopus.

A population is found off Santa Catalina Island where they coexist with pilot whales to feed on the squid population. Although these species have not been seen to interact with each other, they take advantage of the commercial squid fishing that takes place at night. They have been seen by fisherman to feed around their boats. They also travel with other cetaceans. They harass and surf the bow waves of gray whales, as well as ocean swells.

Risso's dolphins have a stratified social organisation. These dolphins typically travel in groups of 10-51, but can sometimes form "super-pods" reaching up to a few thousand individuals. Smaller, stable subgroups exist within larger groups. These groups tend to be similar in age or sex. Risso's experience fidelity towards their groups. Long-term bonds are seen to correlate with adult males. Younger individuals experience less fidelity and can leave and join groups. Mothers show a high fidelity towards a group of mother and calves. But, it is unclear whether or not these females stay together after their calves leave.
From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Risso%27s_dolphin

Video Potamos Liopetriou 2/8/2013 by George Konstantinou

Golden anemone - Condylactis aurantiaca (Delle Chiaje, 1825) - Cyprus

Condylactis aurantiaca, common name golden anemone, is a species of sea anemone in the family Actiniidae. This species always remains largely buried in sand or sediment, attached to the substrate, with only the oral disc and tentacles visible.

The column is translucent white with white spots, and grows to approximately 7 centimetres (2.8 in) in diameter. The oral disc may reach 12 centimetres (4.7 in). The overall diameter with the tentacles spread out is around 30 centimetres (12 in). This species usually has five whorls of tentacles, with 96 tentacles present when it is fully developed. The tentacles are each around 8 centimetres (3 in) long, green to yellow in colour, and sometimes greyish. They often have bands of white and other colours, and purple tips. The mouth, in the centre of the oral disc, is purplish.

Condylactis aurantiaca is found only in the Mediterranean Sea in depths of up to 80 metres. The base is attached to a rock, stone or shell and the column immersed in sediment, usually sand or gravel.

Like other sea anemones, this species catches prey with its tentacles which are armed with many cnidocytes, stinging cells which kill the prey. The prey is then transferred by the tentacles to the mouth. This sea anemone reproduces in spring and summer by releasing gametes into the water column where they are fertilised and develop into planula larvae. Alternatively, the gametes can be retained in the body cavity, the larvae being brooded there till the spring.

The shrimp species Periclimenes aegylios may be found living symbiotically with this sea anemone
From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Condylactis_aurantiaca

Underwater photos March 2018 at Akrotiri by Kostas Aristeidou

Starfish - Hacelia attenuata John Edward Gray, 1840 - Cyprus

Hacelia attenuata is a species of sea star. The type species of the genus Hacelia, it was described by John Edward Gray in 1840. It is found in the Mediterranean Sea.

Underwater photos March 2018 at Akrotiri by Kostas Aristeidou

Tufted ghost crab - Ocypode cursor - Cyprus

Striped red mullet or surmullet - Mullus surmuletus Linnaeus, 1758- Cyprus

The striped red mullet or surmullet (Mullus surmuletus) is a species of goatfish found in the Mediterranean Sea, eastern North Atlantic Ocean, and the Black Sea. They can be found in water as shallow as 5 metres (16 ft) or as deep as 409 metres (1,342 ft) depending upon the portion of their range that they are in. This species can reach a length of 40 centimetres (16 in) SL though most are only around 25 centimetres (9.8 in). The greatest recorded weight for this species is 1 kilogram (2.2 lb). This is a commercially important species and is also sought after as a game fish.

Mullus barbatus and it are commonly called "red mullets" and often are not distinguished, though they can be told apart by the striped first dorsal fin of M. surmuletus.

Despite its English name, the striped red mullet, of the goatfish family Mullidae, is only very distantly related to the grey mullet and other species called "mullet", classified in a different family of the order Perciformes.
From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Striped_red_mullet

Underwater photos by  Costas Constantinou

Το μπαρμπούνι (τρίγλη η μυστακοφόρος, παλαιότερα trigla barbatus, αναφέρεται ως Mullus surmuletus) είναι είδος ακανθοπτέρυγου ψαριού του γένους Τρίγλη (Trigla) της οικογενείας των τριγλιδών (Triglidae). Το μήκος του μπαρμπουνιού φθάνει τα 35 εκατοστά. Έχει χρώμα ερυθρωπό, βαθύτερο στη ράχη και ασημέρυθρο στην κοιλιά, καλύπτεται δε από πολλά μικρά λέπια ωοειδούς σχήματος. Τα στηθαία πτερύγια φέρουν τρεις άκανθες το καθένα, με τις οποίες το μπαρμπούνι ανασκάπτει την άμμο του βυθού για την αναζήτηση τροφής.

Το κεφάλι έχει κυβικό σχήμα και φέρει μεγάλο στόμα με μικρά πολυπληθή δόντια και στις δύο σιαγόνες, ενώ το ρύγχος είναι επιμηκυσμένο και στο άκρο φέρει τριχοειδείς άκανθες (οι οποίες λαϊκά αποκαλούνται "μουστάκια", απ' όπου και το όνομά του). Το σώμα είναι επίμηκες και καταλήγει σε τέσσερις επιμήκεις άκανθες.

Το μπαρμπούνι ζει σε πολλές θάλασσες των ευκράτων περιοχών του πλανήτη (και στις ελληνικές), κυρίως μέσα σε συμπλέγματα φυκών (φυκιάδες), ή σε αμμώδεις - ιλυώδεις βυθούς, όπου και αναζητά την τροφή του, την οποία αποτελούν διάφορα μικρά μαλάκια. Είναι περιζήτητο αλίευμα για τη τρυφερή και νόστιμη σάρκα του.

Παραλλαγή του μπαρμπουνιού είναι η κουτσομούρα (Mullus barbatus), η οποία διαφέρει από το μπαρμπούνι στο χρώμα (είναι περισσότερο ανοικτόχρωμη), στο σχήμα του ρύγχους (στο άκρο του είναι περισσότερο "κοφτό", απ' όπου και το όνομά της) και στο ότι δεν φέρει εμφανές "μουστάκι".

Στο γένος Τρίγλη περιλαμβάνονται, ανάμεσα σε άλλα, τα εξής είδη:

Τρίγλη η χελιδόνα (Trigla hirundo, κοινώς χελιδονόψαρο)
Τρίγλη η λύρα (Trigla lyra)

Τρίγλη η χρυσόπτερος (Trigla surweletus)

Αναφέρεται ως τρίγλη ή τρύγλη στην αρχαία Ελληνική γραμματεία. Εθεωρείτο βρώμικο ψάρι που κατά τον Αιλιανό έτρωγε ακόμα και νεκρούς ανθρώπους. Απαγορευόταν η βρώση τρίγλης στα ιερά της Ελευσίνας και της Ήρας στο Άργος, ενώ συνδεόταν μυθολογικά με την Εκάτη και την Άρτεμη. Επίσης απαγορευόταν η κατανάλωσή της (όπως και άλλων ειδών ψαριών) κατά τους Πυθαγόρειους
From https://el.wikipedia.org/wiki/%CE%9C%CF%80%CE%B1%CF%81%CE%BC%CF%80%CE%BF%CF%8D%CE%BD%CE%B9

Common prawn - Palaemon serratus - Cyprus

Family: Palaemonidae

Palaemon serratus, also called the common prawn, is a species of shrimp found in the Atlantic Ocean from Denmark to Mauritania, and in the Mediterranean Sea and Black Sea

Individuals live for 3–5 years in groups in rocky crevices at depths of up to 40 metres (130 ft). Females grow faster than males, and the population is highly seasonal, with a pronounced peak in the autumn. They are preyed upon by a variety of fish, including species of Mullidae, Moronidae, Sparidae and Batrachoididae

P. serratus may be distinguished from other species of shrimp by the rostrum, which curves upwards, is bifurcated at the tip and has 6–7 along its upper edge, and 4–5 teeth on the lower edge. Other speciesmay have a slightly curved rostrum, but then the teeth on its dorsal surface continue into the distal third, which is untoothed in P. serratus. P. serratus is pinkish brown, with reddish patterns, and is typically 100 millimetres (3.9 in) long, making it the largest of the native shrimp and prawns around the British Isles.

P. serratus is one of the few invertebrates to have its hearing studied in detail; it is sensitive to frequencies between 100 Hz and 3 kHz, with an acuity similar to that of generalist fish. While the hearing range of a P. serratus individual changes as it grows, all are capable of hearing tones at 500 Hz

A small commercial fishery exists for P. serratus on the west coast of Great Britain, chiefly in West Wales (Cemaes Head to the Llŷn Peninsula), but extending increasingly far north to include parts of Scotland. In Ireland, fishing for P. serratus began at Baltimore, County Cork in the 1970s and subsequently expanded. A peak landing of 548 t was recorded in 1999, and four counties account for over 90% of the catch — Galway, Kerry, Cork and Waterford. There is now concern that the current levels of exploitation may represent overfishing, and measures are being considered to limit the catch, such as a minimum landing size.
From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palaemon_serratus

Underwater photos by Kostas Aristeidou