Photos 17/11/2014 by George Konstantinou
Photos 27/4/2018 by George Konstantinou
See also
Friday, 6 May 2016
Η εκκλησία του Αρχαγγέλου Μιχαήλ στη Γιαλούσα - Archangkelos Michail at Gialousa - Cyprus
Photos 17/11/2014 by George Konstantinou
Photos 27/4/2018 by George Konstantinou
Εκκλησία Άγιος Φανούριος στην Aγία Tριάδα Γιαλούσας - Church Agios Fanourios at Agia Triada - Cyprus
Photos 7/11/2015 by George Konstantinou
See also
Το χωριό Αγιά Τριάδα (Γιαλούσας) Καρπασίας - Ayia Trias, Karpasias Cyprus
Η Μονή Αγίου Γεωργίου του Σακκά στην κατεχόμενη Αγία Τριάδα Γιαλούσας
Ξωκλήσι Αγίου Χρυσοστόμου στην Αγία Τριάδα
Εκκλησία Άγιος Θέρισσος στην Καρπασία - Church of Agios therissos at karpasia Cyprus
Ξωκλήσι της Αγίας Μαρίνας Πύργου στην Αγία Τριάδα
Αρχαία αγάλματα στην Καρπασία
Η Βασιλική της Αγίας Τριάδας
Εκκλησία Αγιά Τριάδα στο χωριό Αγιά Τριάδα - Church Agia Triada at Agia Triada Cyprus
Αιωνόβια Τρεμιθκιά ή Τρέμιθθος (Pistacia terebinthus) στο χωριό Αγία Τριάδα (Γιαλούσας) Καρπασίας - Centuries old Pistacia terebinthus at Ayia Trias, Karpasias Cyprus
Wednesday, 4 May 2016
Monday, 2 May 2016
Red tube worm - Serpula vermicularis Linnaeus, 1767 - Cyprus
Serpula vermicularis, known by common names including the calcareous tubeworm, fan worm, plume worm or red tube worm, is a species of segmented marine polychaete worm in the family Serpulidae. It is the type species of the genus Serpula and was first described by Linnaeus in 1767. It lives in a tube into which it can retract
Serpula vermicularis lives in a calcareous tube which is attached to a rock, boulder or other hard surface. The tube is often curved, but is not tightly coiled as in some other related species. It can grow to a length of 20 cm (7.9 in), but is usually shorter than this. The anterior part of the worm protrudes from the tube and has a plume of about 40 feather-like radioles projecting from the second segment, or peristomium, which also houses the two eyes and the mouth. The radioles are bipinnate and covered with fine cilia. They are commonly red, orange or pink and are usually banded with white. A funnel-shaped lid or operculum covers the entrance to the tube when the animal retracts inside. This lid has up to 160 fine creases around its edge and is symmetrical and usually red. It is sometimes divided into two. The yellow-coloured body has seven thoracic segments and up to 190 abdominal segments which are protected by the tube. At least four segments with setae (bristles) are found in the thoracic region.
Serpula vermicularis is cosmopolitan in distribution. It is found in the Pacific and Indian Oceans and the European seaboard of the Atlantic Ocean, but not on the North American coast. It occurs in the intertidal zone and at depths down to 100 m (330 ft). Also along Southern African coast from Olifant's River to Maputo.
Serpula vermicularis grows on hard substrates. It favours shells of bivalves, boulders and man-made structures. Around the United Kingdom, juveniles were found to be plentiful growing on the bryozoan, Flustra foliacea. Large colonies sometimes form, but these are seldom on rocks. Larvae may settle on the tubes of other worms and their subsequent development can form reefs. These reefs are very fragile and often break up. This is sometimes due to the activity of certain boring sponges, such as Cliona celata (red boring sponge)The tube of S. vermicularis is made from calcite and aragonite. Calcium for its manufacture is stored in two white sacs on the ventral side of the peristomium. The tube is fabricated by the glandular ventral shields on the other thoracic segments, where calcium is mixed with an organic secretion to make a paste. This is formed into shape by a collar found just behind the first segment, the prostomium.
Serpula vermicularis is a filter feeder and extends its radioles to catch phytoplankton and detritus. The radioles also act as gills. Blood is pumped in and out of these with the flow direction alternating in a single set of vessels. The blood is then pumped through a ventral blood vessel to the tip of the abdomen before returning through a sinus adjoining the gut.
The blood of S. vermicularis contains the oxygen-binding pigment chlorocruorin. As well as transporting oxygen to the tissues, this binds carbon monoxide much more efficiently than does human haemoglobin. This may be the reason why the worm may settle and grow on brown seaweeds such as Fucus, but avoids giant kelp, Nereocystis. The latter uses carbon monoxide to inflate its pneumocysts, and this would be toxic to the worm.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Underwater photo Akamas 2.5.2016 by Costas Constantinou
Halimione portulacoides (L.) Aellen - Cyprus
Halimione portulacoides or sea purslane (2n=36) is a small greyish-green shrub widely distributed in temperate Eurasia and parts of Africa.
A halophyte, it is found in salt marshes and coastal dunes, and is usually flooded at high tide.
The plant grows to 75 cm. It is evergreen, and in northern temperate climates it flowers from July to September. The flowers are monoecious and are pollinated by wind.
The edible leaves can be eaten raw in salads or cooked as a potherb. They are thick and succulent with a crunchy texture and a natural saltiness
Halimione portulacoides occurs at the sea shores of western and southern Europe, and from the Mediterranean Sea to western Asia
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Photos Meneou 2/4/2016 by George Konstantinou
Mediterranean fan worm - Sabella spallanzanii (Gmelin, 1791) - Cyprus
Sabella spallanzanii is a species of marine polychaete worms in the family Sabellidae. Common names include the Mediterranean fanworm, the feather duster worm, the European fan worm and the pencil worm. It is native to shallow waters in the northeastern Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea. It has spread to various other parts of the world and is included on the Global Invasive Species Database.
The species' name commemorates the 18th-century biologist Lazzaro Spallanzani.
European fan worms grow to a total length of 9 to 40 cm (4 to 16 in) and are usually larger in deep water. They have stiff sandy tubes formed from hardened mucus secreted by the worm which protrude from the sand, and a two-layered crown of feeding tentacles which can be retracted into the tube. One of the layers forms a distinct spiral. The colour of the tentacles is variable but they are usually banded in orange, purple and white or they may be a uniform pale grey. Various epiphytic organisms settle and grow on the tubes which may be rather wrinkled near their bases.
The European fan worm is native to the northeastern Atlantic Ocean, the North Sea and the Mediterranean Sea. Its range extends from the United Kingdom and Ireland, through France, Spain and Portugal to Italy, Greece and Turkey. It is also known from South America and the southern African Namaqualand coast to Port Elizabeth. It first appeared in Western Australia in 1965 and since then has spread to other parts of southern Australia, and was first seen in New South Wales in 1996. It is regarded as an invasive species in Australia. It is found at depths down to 30 m (98 ft) and is found in nutrient-rich waters in sheltered locations where there are no strong currents and little wave action. It grows on soft sediments or anchors itself to rocks, mollusc shells, jetties, pontoons or other solid surfaces. It may grow on the hulls of moored boats but does not usually foul vessels that are in frequent useThe European fan worm is a filter feeder and feeds on bacteria, zooplankton, phytoplankton and suspended particles of organic matter. Individual worms are either male or female and liberate gametes into the sea. A large female can produce upwards of 50,000 eggs during the breeding season. The larvae are planktonic and settle to the seabed after about two weeks, metamorphosis taking place some ten days later.
The European fan worm is a rather successful organism whose larvae can easily disperse to new locations. As an invasive species and a filter feeder, it competes with native species and with farmed oysters and mussels for food. Its presence in an area can alter water flows and sedimentation. In seagrass meadows it may grow on and weigh down leaf blades. There may be a reduction in the population of cumaceans, harpacticoid copepods and ostracods in the sediment and an increase in amphipods, barnacles and other species of tube worms on the tubes
The European fan worm is able to bioaccumulate bacteria and has a profound effect on the marine bacterial environment. Microbes build up in the worm and are present at much higher concentrations in its tissues than in the surrounding water and this means the worm can be used as a bioindicator. It is efficient at filtering out Vibrio spp. bacteria that are pathogenic to fish and shellfish and can cause foodborne illness in man. It can also potentially be used for remediation of polluted water near sewage outlets.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Underwater photo Akamas 2.5.2016 by Costas Constantinou
Saturday, 30 April 2016
White-faced Bush-Cricket - Desticus albifrons (Fabricius, 1775)[1] - Cyprus
Decticus is a genus of bush-cricket in the family Tettigoniidae.
Species of this genus are present in Europe, Cyprus .in Asia and in North Africa.
Video 30/4/2016 by George Konstantinou
Species of this genus are present in Europe, Cyprus .in Asia and in North Africa.
Video 30/4/2016 by George Konstantinou
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