DIVELOG JUNE 406

MARINE BIOLOGY WITH MIKE SCOTLAND - FISH IDENTIFICATION

My buddy admires a beautiful big Spotted Wobbegong.

skin flaps on their ‘lips’ and spiracles so they can breathe whilst resting, just like rays. Their flattened bodies are ideal for wedging into crevices. They have fair vision in low light especially close up. All species have a white spot at the high end of their spiracle. All Carpet sharks have superb camouflage. They live on the seafloor but they do swim well. A huge wobbegong swimming in mid-water is very spectacular as they sway from side to side with their extremely flexible bodies. They feed, mainly at night, using the ‘sit and wait’ ambush hunting technique. They are able to leap up with lightning speed to grasp prey swimming overhead. It looks like they are doing push ups. Take a look at the massive ‘chest’ muscles and the huge ‘pecs’ of a nine foot wobby. The head and massive chest merge into a sharky version of Chesty Bond. It is all designed to help them to power up at high speed. Never grab a wobbegong by the tail. They are extremely flexible having a skeleton made of cartilage like all sharks and rays. Wobbegongs have lightning fast reflexes. They can bite you and sometimes will not let go. Sadly, they are hunted commercially for fish ‘n chips. (flake) Skin can be used as leather in some cultures. Both the Spotted and Hale’s Ornate wobbegong are

overfished and are listed as vulnerable…. That is, seriously overfished. Make no mistake, wobbies are one of the most dangerous sharks of all! They have a very gruff personality and a very short temper. They really are two hundred pounds of dynamite with a very, very short fuse. They are in the scientific Order known as ORECTOLOBIFORMES . Other families of sharks in this Order include Whale sharks, Leopard sharks, Nurse sharks and Blind sharks. Wobbegongs are in the family ORECTOLOBIDAE Other members of this family include the Pygmy Ornate wobby, the Banded Ornate or Hale’s wobby, the Spotted and the Tasseled wobbies. Pygmy Banded wobbegong, Orectolobus ornatus The small Ornate Pygmy wobbegong grows to just over a metre. Some people call them Pygmy Ornate wobbegongs. I personally prefer this name. It removes the confusion with the bigger Hale’s wobbegongs that has always been known amongst divers as the Banded Ornate wobby. The pygmy is the smallest wobby and the Banded Ornate wobby is the largest and sometimes eats the Pygmies.

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DIVE LOG Australasia #406 - June ‘24