Following on from last week’s top 10 music (which I’m going to run for a little longer, by the way), Nando sent me his top 10 species. Here they are, with a little bit about why he likes them so much.
We hope to bring you more guest posts from Nando very soon!
Phialella zappai by Alberto GennariPhialella zappai
the Zappa jellyfish, what else? I found it during my stay at Bodega Bay, in 1983. When I offered a new jellyfish to Frank Zappa he answered: there is nothing in my life I’d like better than having a jellyfish with my name! No problem, Frank!
Boeromedusa auricogonia
this one has my name, my friend Jean Bouillon named the genus after me, but then he teased me: the name of the species hints at pendulous gonads, even if this feature has nothing to do with me.
Cetorhinus maximus
the gentle giant, I saw one looooong time ago, and he was longer than the boat. It makes you feel so small.
Branchiocerianthus imperator
the largest hydroid (2 m high), named after Emperor Hirohito (a hydrozoan specialist himself, we used to exchange reprints).
Eunectes murinus
aka anaconda. There was a 6 m specimen in the Natural Museum of Genova, I could look at it for hours when I was a boy, I owe to that guy my career in zoology.
Homo sapiens
after all, I like us, in all available models.
Jassa falcata
it is an amphipod (now the right name is Jassa marmorata), I studied its behaviour during my thesis. Lots of fun. I felt like big brother in observing those little creatures through a stereomicroscope.
Artemia franciscana
those resting stages that become alive overnight. So mysterious. Then I became a fanatic of resting stages, and I use Artemia to feed my jellyfish.
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