TTL_BOOK_v8 30.07.25 - Flipbook - Page 31
BEYOND THE FRAME
Photographer Brooke Pyke captured this shot in the cold
waters of Esperance, on Australia’s southwest coast. She
says the leafy seadragon was a bucket list ocean critter
for her, and to 昀椀nd one in such clear water and with a
tail full of eggs was “an absolute delight”. If the water
hadn’t been so cold she would have spent all day with
this exquisite animal.
The Great Southern Reef on the south coast of Australia
is a biodiversity hotspot that is often overlooked, as it is
not as well-known as the Great Barrier Reef on the east
coast. This precious ecosystem didn’t even have an o昀케cial
name until 2016. And yet – the Great Southern Reef is
home to hundreds of species that are not found anywhere
else on Earth, including the only three known species
of seadragons: the weedy (or common) seadragon, the
leafy seadragon, and the ruby seadragon. Like seahorses,
seadragon males carry babies for around six weeks before
they are born.
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