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Polychaetes are segmented worms that are some of the most common and diverse creatures found along our shores. Almost 800 species occur in southern Africa. They vary in size and some species can grow up to 1meter in length. Many of the species are burrowing worms. We’ve created a special artificial burrow for this worm so that it is easier for us to keep an eye on him and for you to see what he’s up to.

Tube anemones have soft bodies that are enclosed in a protective mucous tube, which the anemones bury in soft sand or mud.

Longhorn cowfish grow to a maximum size of 45cm. They occur at depths of up to 100m. Their bodies are enclosed in an “armour” of fused bony scales and they have two prominent horns protruding above their eyes. Longhorn cowfish are commonly found in harbours and estuaries.

Convict surgeons are found on shallow inshore reefs, in rock pools and around sheltered wharfs and jetties where seaweeds and algae are plentiful.

Sea goldies live in and around coral reefs in warm tropical oceans. These beautiful little fish are often seen in large shoals and add splashes of colour to the reef.

Look carefully and see if you can spot the differences between males and females.

Females are orange-gold with a blue stripe below the eye and males are reddish with an extended third dorsal spine.

Sex change on the reef
Many fishes have the ability to change sex. This is a strategy to maximise reproductive output. Some change from male to female while others change from female to male such as sea goldies.

This is the dominant reproductive style on coral reefs. On these reefs there is intense competition for the best spawning sites and large dominant males set up territories which are defended against all other males. The larger the male, the bigger his territory and the more females he will attract to spawn with. In this way millions of eggs can be fertilised by a single male. Smaller fish cannot compete for these sites so they remain female until they are large enough to compete and the opportunity arises.

Zebra moray eels live on reefs in warm tropical oceans | Two Oceans Aquarium

Floral moray eels live in the Indo-West Pacific, the Red Sea and the Western Indian Ocean from Oman to East London.

Geometric moray eels are found on coral reefs in the Red Sea and the Western Indian Ocean, south of the Eastern Cape.

Mudskippers live in mangrove forests along the tropical coasts of the Indian and Pacific oceans. They inhabit mudflats and tolerate a wide range of salinities. Mudskippers belong to the Goby family – a comparatively recent group of fishes, which first appeared in the fossil record some 58-37 million years ago.

Mudskippers can remain out of water for several days, breathing through specialised chambers in their mouths and gills. When the tide goes out, they skip quickly over the mudflats in search of food, using their sturdy pectoral fins as legs. They are also able to flip themselves forward with their tails, sometimes by as much as a metre. Some species climb up into the tangled roots of mangroves to hunt insects and small crustaceans.

Like many estuarine animals, mudskippers watch over their eggs until they hatch, rather than releasing them into an uncertain environment. The male mudskipper digs a nesting hole in the mud and attracts females to the nest, using a comic courtship display. When a female responds, she attaches her eggs to the wall of the burrow and the male fertilises them.

Shrimpfish, also known as razorfish,(Aeoliscus punctulatus) are found in the Red Sea and off the east coast of Africa from Kenya south to Algoa Bay.

These strange fish swim in an upright vertical position (nose-down). They are perfectly adapted to this lifestyle in that the dorsal fin is situated at the end of their bodies and their tail fin is displaced vertically. They have flattened bodies with bony plates, sharp ventral edges and long snouts.

Shrimpfish are often seen in tightly packed shoals in shallow coastal waters along reef edges and in beds of seagrass.

These fish feed mainly on planktonic crustaceans. In the Aquarium, they are fed on vitamin-enriched brine shrimp as well as zooplankton. They grow to approximately 20cm.

Slender snipefish are distantly related to seahorses and pipefishes. These fish live at depths between 25 and 600m in large shoals.