If you ever need a monitor that sex is utterly natural , you need only look to the Animal Kingdom . Where it perhaps gets a small freaky is out in the deep blue ocean , and the recent achiever from the2021 Ocean Art Contestcaptured this in all its NSFW marvel .
upright of Show and first place Marine Life Behavior was awarded to Luc Rooman for the photo“Snoeken”(pictured above ) , record two lip - locked thruway seen during a night dive at the Domein Muisbroek site near Antwerp , Belgium . While the two were in reality fighting rather than sire it on , we all know how one passionate interaction can spill into another .
In case you ’ve ever wondered what mating seahorse look like , one of PT Hirschfield ’s two prize - winning photos in the Compact Behavior family is here to aid , read two Bigbelly sea horse enlist in a pre - mating dance ( " Mating walrus " ) . These elaborated performances can last for several days – and impressively , the photographer was able to catch the moment the female transferred her testis into the male ’s sack .
1st Place Compact Behavior : PT Hirschfield " Mating Seahorses " - Ocean Art Contest 2021
“ It was beatify to in conclusion frustrate this limited act of seahorse orchis transfer of training ( which live only a few brief moments ) from my underwater picture taking Bucket List , ” said Hirschfield in a affirmation .
Passions were high too in their 3rd Place Compact Behavior debut – " Mating Southern Keeled Octopuses"–capturing two mollusks mating in the Mornington Peninsula ’s “ Octopuses Garden ” . Here , vast number of pale octopus duo can be found , but this was the first time Hirschfield had been able to catch two on camera in the act .
3rd Place Compact Behavior : PT Hirschfield " Mating Southern Keeled Octopuses " - Ocean Art Contest 2021
“ It was also the first time I ’ve ever seen octopuses mating with a shield between them , ” they said in astatement . “ When I first spotted them from a space , the male was sitting atop of the racing shell containing the female . "
" I wondered what would bechance if I lento near the shell . I was surprised to see the male person mirror my cause . When I catch very close to the shell , the male wax onto it again and inserted his hectocotylus pairing arm into the wait female person below , allowing me to get a very close and intimate shot of the action . ”
Now that ’s our form of putz use .
sticky scenes aside , the come through launching contained some breathless snap show the submerged man in all its colorful , confusing , and laughable marvel . Here are a few more of our favorites :
We also got to see the wonderful outcome of when two become one in a fulgent shot called"Future Generations"which scoop 2nd place in the Nudibranch class . In it , we see a Chromodoris luterosa sea slug tail vivacious eggs , captured on photographic camera by Virginia Salzedo .
2nd Place Marine Life Behavior : Julian Hsu " Guarding Eggs " - Ocean Art Contest 2021
“ Guarding Eggs”by Julian Hsu scooped 2nd property for Marine Life Behavior , bear witness a yellow pygmy gudgeon screen its eggs beneath a disastrous sponge in Anilao , Batangas , in the Philippines .
2nd Place Underwater Conservation : Steven Kovacs " Smoke Break " - Ocean Art Contest 2021
On the matter of gobies , if you ’d like to acknowledge more about the story behind Steven Kovacs'“Smoke Break”(second place Underwater Conservation ) , clickhere .
3rd Place Marine Life Behavior : Louise Nott " Festoons " - Ocean Art Contest 2021
As far as bollock protection goes , the female gloomy octopus star in Louise Nott ’s winning photo“Festoons”(third place Marine Life Behavior ) got a little more creative with her succeeding progeny , opt to wear her eggs like accoutrement medallion .
Honorable Mention Place Blackwater : Fabien Michenet " Juvenile Deep - Sea Anglerfish " - Ocean Art Contest 2021
No sea picture taking competition would be utter without some blackwater diving magic , and Fabien Michenet certainly delivered here winning Honorable Mention Place Blackwater with the shot“Juvenile Deep - Sea Anglerfish ” .
Honorable Mention Blackwater : Steven Kovacs " Greedy " - Ocean Art Contest 2021
On the topic of fish that look more like alien invasions , Steven Kovacs'“Spotfin Flounder”(Honorable Mention Blackwater ) is a humorous insight into the greedy nature of larval lobsters . Here , one can be seen curb four larval acorn worms for collation .
Honorable Mention Underwater Conservation : Catherine Holmes " Reef Protection " - Ocean Art Contest 2021
And no creature better represents invasions than that of an invasive species , like the lionfish captured in Catherine Holmes ’ shot“Reef Protection”(Honorable Mention Underwater Conservation ) .
These fish are thought to have been put in to the Atlantic by humans and have since proliferated to annihilating effects . Now , invasivoresare trying to see if human beings can eat their mode out of the trouble we create by turn invasive species into culinary delicacies . Lionfish sushi , anyone ?
you could see all of the winners from the 2021 Ocean Art Contesthere .
