Wednesday, November 4, 2009

Getting Muddy with Art



Arthur Anker, a Postdoctoral Researcher with the FLMNH Invertebrate Zoology department, has a knack for finding the unnoticed things, the creatures that everyone else somehow misses. Here in Moorea, French Polynesia, Art has specialized in the muddy, mucky habitats that most marine biologists wouldn't stick a toe in. Art, however, thrives here, and has brought back a steady stream of new records, new species, and just plain amazing animals that don't seem to live anywhere else. Tools of the trade include a "Yabbie Pump" for pumping small animals from shrimp burrows, a range of fine dipnets, and the patience to work in two feet of muddy water for most of the day.

A few of Art's finds follow, but many more can be found on his flickr stream.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/artour_a/
-Seabird