#831: Whelk

Whelk is a term given to various species of sea snail, generally those that are consumed by humans and other animals.This fellow is an ivory whelk. Unlike their terrestrial kin, marine snails are not hermaphrodites and have distinct genders. True whelks prey on other molluscs, such as other snails, and clams, as well as carrion. For this, he has a very well developed sense of smell and can sense chemical signals from their prey. Once the prey has been located, the Whelk will bore through the shell.  

#830: Whale Shark

Like the largest mammal, the largest fish also dines upon the smallest of creatures - plankton*. Whale Sharks can grow over 12m in length, weighing in at around 20 tons, and may grow significantly larger.He is a slow-moving shark, swimming through the water with his huge mouth open. Water is filtered through his 300 rows of tiny teeth and over his sieve-like filter pads. Crustaceans and other plankton is then swallowed, with excess water expelled through his gills. Whale Sharks are docile fish, and Vulnerable to extinction due to their long life and slow maturation.

* Not that plankton is exactly one creature. It is considered an ecological niche and can be divided into four trophic groups: Zoo- (crustaceans, larvae and any small lifeform ranging in size from microscopic to jellyfish); phyto- (lifeforms that require photosynthesis); myco- (fungi etc) and bacterio- (bacteria and archea).

I suspect the Whale Sharks diet consists predominantly of zooplankton.

#829: Whale

The Whales are a diverse group of marine mammals, ranging in size from the 2.6 m dwarf sperm whale to the largest living mammal on Earth, the blue whale (30 m). The diet of whales is varied, this humpback and the blue are baleen whales, filter feeders. The smaller species, like the sperm whales, are toothed whales, and hunt their prey, singling out individuals for pursuit. Baleen whales favour a more indirect technique, either swimming forward, mouth agape, or gulping in great mouthfuls, filtering out the edible contents and expelling the water. Many whale species are threatened with extinction; they are long-lived, slow to mature and rarely bear more than one calf every few years. Some species have been actively hunted to the brink of extinction, and all suffer from deep-sea trawling and other human interference.

#829: Weta

Weta are various species of flightless crickets, endemic to New Zealand. This giant weta, weighing in at around 35g (but with some individuals weighing 70g or more), is one of the heaviest insects in the world. Diet varies between species, with some preying on invertebrates, whereas the giant weta favours lichens, leaves and flowers. With her powerful jaws, she is capable of inflicting a painful bite, although she prefers to threaten her prey and retreat, rather than attack. Her ovipositor, which resembles a stinger, is used to deposit her eggs deep into rotting wood or soil.

#828: Weevil

Weevil is the name given to various species of small beetle, some of which may be more closely related than others. They are generally regarded to be pest species, causing damage to crops due to their herbivorous diet. This fellow is a blue weevil from New Guinea. He is one of the so-called "colourful weevils". His colouration acts as a warning, advertising that they are distasteful.

Biscuit weevils are not actually weevils at all, they are indeed members of the wood borer insect family.

#827: Weedy Seadragon

The Weedy Seadragon is a member of the seahorse Family. He inhabits coastal reefs, to depths of around 50 m. Slow moving, he relies on camouflage for protection and will generally be found amongst swaying seaweed, where his various leaf-like appendages blend in. His tail is not prehensile. His long, slender snout is used to suction up zooplankton. Like his hippocampus cousins, the male Weedy Seadragon carries the eggs in a pouch on the underside of his tail. Here he fertilised them, then carries them until they hatch into tiny, independent dragons.

The Weedy Seadragon is Near Threatened. Whilst there is some popularity for his species in the pet trade, survival rates are low and reproduction rare. However, it is mainly habitat disruption and destruction that is reponsible for his decline.

#826: Weaver Ant

The Weaver Ants are large, arboreal ants. They are named for their complicated nests, which are constructed from leaves, which the colony stitches together. Currently there are only two extant species: one of which is this green tree ant. She is found in Northern Australia and Asia.  These ants are eusocial, with only a few females breeding and the rest are infertile workers. Workers are divided into minor or major, with the major being the larger (up to 1cm in length) and more adventurous. Minor workers remain within the nest, caring for the broods. She follows an insectivorous diet, supplementing the small invertebrates with honeydew, "milked" from scale insects.

We have a few photos of the green tree ants, which were fairly common around the Northern Territory. The nests are so neatly stiched together, that it is fascinating to think that they were created by an insect.