Spanish Dancer - Nudibranch

Spanish Dancer  - Hexabranchus sanguineus
This species was found in in Walis Island in East Sepik Procince while National Fisheries Authority officers were conducting sea cucumber surveys.

It has a maximum size of  61 cm and predates on sponges. It is predicted to be poisonous and should not be collected  if you are interested in aquarium. Spanish Dancers are large, brilliant red nudibranchs capable of swimming in the water column.

Their red coloration and non-reclusive behavior are likely signals that they are toxic. 

Sea Cucumber survey in Papua New Guinea

Two divers measuring sea cucumber species in a assessment in PNG.

Sea Cucumber survey in Papua New Guinea by National Fisheries Authority (NFA) officers in one of the survey sites in PNG. The survey is a ongoing annually to monitor the recovery of the sea cucumber species after over harvesting.

Starfish or Sea star?

A magnificent species with 5 to 6 or more arms have been commonly called starfish. However, marine scientists have undertaken the difficult task of replacing the beloved starfish's comon name with sea star because, well the starfish is not a fish. Its an echinoderm, closely related to sea urchins and sand dollars.
There are some 2000 species of sea star found in the world's oceans, from tropical habitat to cold seafloor. The five-arm varieties are the most common, hence there name, but species with 10, 20 and even more arms exist. An example would be crown of thorns sea star which damages all the coral reefs systems by eating away the corals.
They have bony, calcified skin which protects them from most predators and many wear striking colors that camouflage them or scare off potential attackers.

Beyond their distinctive shape, sea stars are famous for their ability to regenerate limbs, and in some cases, entire bodies. They accomplish this by housing most or all of their vital organs in their arms. Some require the central body to be intact to regenerate, but a few species can grow an entirely new sea star just from a portion of a severed limb.

Most sea stars also have the remarkable ability to consume prey outside their bodies. Using tiny, suction-cupped tube feet, they pry open clams or oysters, and their sack-like cardiac stomach emerges from their mouth and oozes inside the shell. The stomach then envelops the prey to digest it, and finally withdraws back into the body.

Goodenough Island-Milne Bay Province

While surving in Goodenough Island, North west coast of Milne Bay Province, Papua New Guinea, we came across this Holothuria coluber and coral bommie with cardina fish.