Armed with our flashlights we set off into the unknown.

Here we see a lion fish. It bears the scientific name Pterois volitans and is often known as one of the more annoying, freeloading, invasive species.

Can you find the camouflaged Octopus briareus?

Well, here we are again ladies and gentlemen. I present to you the brave class of Discovery Bay 2015. We have a special treat for those for those of you watching/reading back home. Yesterday, while Anita volunteered to remain behind and ID our previously collected specimens, the rest of us bravely plunged into the waters to gather more photographic evidence of life beneath the waves.

Not good enough, you say? You say we have already discussed snorkeling? Right you are folks. So what if I told you six brave souls swum out to the reef crest…. at night. What? Still not enough? Alright, alright. What if I told you we, the students, went on a night snorkel without the professors! That’s right. All alone. So, now that I have your attention, let’s continue.

As soon as the sun set we grabbed our gear, a few cameras, and our trusty flashlights before kicking out into the darkness. Now I will admit, for the first half an hour or so we refused to break ranks. I myself was kicked several times and certainly kicked a few masks in return (accidentally of course). At first we found a few crabs, a surplus of sea cucumbers, and a plethora of puffer fish (who surprisingly do not mind people swimming up to them).

As the night wore on, we grew more adventurous and started to drift further and further apart. Only problem was that Joe and Stathi found an octopus eating a crab and drifted away from the pack. Man, it is really hard to find your partners’ flashlight beam out in the bay, even if your turn yours off. Eventually we found them, along with a sharptail eel (Myrichthys breviceps), a scrawled filefish (Aluterus scriptus), and so much more. Hopefully, on our next night adventure we’ll see a few stingrays and other interesting creatures… as a group!

-Shay