The Coral Reef at Night

To most people, mention of a coral reef conjures images of sunlit, turquoise water. But the reef at night is a totally different world: Against a background of deepest black, the reef and its inhabitants come vividly to life. Coral animals emerge, transforming their rocky limestone homes into brilliant, multicolored gardens, and fishes and other creatures join them, displaying markedly different forms and behaviors from those seen in daylight. Through words and images, The Coral Reef at Night takes us on a remarkable journey through the hours between dusk and dawn, explaining how darkness transforms this environment into a mysterious, unusually beautiful relam where bioluminescence is the only natural form of light. With 111 full-color plates by world-renowned undersea photographer Jeff Rotman, the book details the rich display of curious behaviors and extraordinary creatures that illuminate this shadowy world. We watch as familiar daytime reef animals take on their nighttime guises, changing color, hiding in crevices, or even wrapping themselves in a special protective coating. We see sharks, moray eels, and other large nocturnal predators emerge to hunt in the inky blackness. We wonder at the elusive flashlight fish, which "blinks" by turning on and off paired, elliptical patches of blue-green light - a mysterious and unsettling sight for a novice diver. We marvel as thousands of tiny transparent jellylike organisms swarm around a diver's hand-held light. And we discover many little-known animals, some photographed here for the first time. The clear and lively text by Joe Levine introduces basic biological concepts and scientific facts in an easy-to-read, anecdotal fashion. The Coral Reef at Night also includes a bounty of useful information for the adventurer - there is a whole chapter devoted to the challenges, thrills, and dangers of night diving - and photographer Jeff Rotman contributes a short essay on underwater photography, with special attention given to photographing at night. This unique volume - no other book focuses exclusively on the reef at night - will appeal to divers, snorkelers, and all lovers of the natural world. -- from dust jacket.