This deep-diving Brandt"s cormorant appears to be on the hunt for a meal, and there"s plenty of Pacific chub mackerel to choose from here off the coast of Los Angeles, California. While seabirds like the cormorant are a threat to these fish, the mackerel aren"t exactly defenseless. Fish have many unique means of defense, such as traveling in dense schools like this one. It"s a technique that not only allows for speedy travel (because it reduces friction on most of the fish in the school)—schooling also makes it more difficult for predators to pick out an individual victim. For these fish, there"s safety in numbers. But when all else fails, they can take some advice from Dory in "Finding Nemo"—"Just keep swimming, just keep swimming."
A seabird gets schooled
Today in History
More Desktop Wallpapers:
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It s Independence Day in Mexico
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Roques de Benet, Els Ports Natural Park, Catalonia, Spain
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Skyscraper Day
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Hues of Hokkaido
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Going head-to-head with winter
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Native American Heritage Month
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Come out of your shell for World Turtle Day
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Merry Christmas!
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Let’s celebrate
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From the mind of Frank Gehry
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Computer science on the page
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Heron lies the Salton Sea
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An island hopper s paradise
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A treaty for science
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A place called ‘Peace’ in India
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A crested partridge
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Brown pelican, San Diego, California
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Hot and Spicy Food Day
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Val Gardena, South Tyrol, Dolomites, Italy
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Fin whales: A success story
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Peel Castle on St. Patrick’s Isle with the Isle of Man in the background
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National Napping Day
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Dancers perform ‘Revelations’
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Mitsumata blossoms
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Are you older than this lake?
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A Christmas market with a long history
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A dramatic view of Sicily
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A center of antiquity on the Mediterranean
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Winter in the Finnish wilds
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A Latino art exhibition in Denver