Oceanic Blog-A-Thon 2012

Welcome, welcome, welcome! 

It's time for our World Oceans Day annual get-together of bloggers who care about our seas and oceans and want to help protect them and increase awareness about how important they are, whether on a personal level or an environmental or scientific one. It's time for the 4th annual

OCEANIC BLOG-A-THON!

 

4th edition already?! How time flies! Seems like just yesterday I learnt about World Oceans Day and was wondering what I could do to honour it... and so many wonderful people joined in the fun for the past three editions with some fabulous posts, I can't wait to see what you guys have prepared this year! My post probably won't be up until tomorrow because I'm presently sleep-deprived and exhausted from all day travelling home from Greece... and in desperate need of a REAL shower! A week on a sailboat with just minimum water showers... fun but... ;o)

from World Atlas.com

Speaking of Greece, how about a few Oceanic Facts about the Aegean Sea to kick off this year's edition? 

• The Aegean Sea is a branch of the Mediterranean Sea located between Greece (northern limit), Asia Minor (eastern limit) and Crete (southern limit).
• There are so many islands in the Aegean that it was originally called Archipelago, a name which later referred simply to those islands, and more recently to any group of islands in close proximity to each other.
• This abundance of islands neighbouring the mainland made travel and trade (and war) between the various peoples of Ancient Greece easier, thereby helping in the development of the origins of our "Western Culture".
• The waters of the Aegean are crystal clear, an indication that the Aegean is very poor in nutrients, although it's a bit better off than the rest of the Mediterranean thanks to the entry of less salty waters from the Black Sea.
• The Aegean Sea is one of two key sites where the population of the critically endangered Mediterranean Monk Seal Monachus monachus is still viable.

Time to pass the baton on to our fellow bloggers. Check out these posts and remember to come back throughout the weekend since I'll be adding new ones as soon as you write them and send me the link! ;o)  And spread the word to your readers, see if they have a few minutes this weekend to stop and think about the oceans!

• TravelDive Girl from Journey and Adventure suggests we "Get Nudi!", but not in the way you might think! ;o) She takes us on a journey to the Philippines to discover the amazing variety of nudibranchs (a type of sea slug, usually beautiful colours) to be found diving in that region!

• Louie, the one and only Mountain Mermaid, has walked the shores of many seas and oceans, each one inspiring her in its own way. Each one bringing tears to her eyes when she sees what man has done. Her "World Oceans Day" is a call to arms, a call to action to help protect our oceans!

• In "World Oceans Day 2012" River Song, from Desert's Spirit Fire, uses sensory memories and sensuous currents to share her love story with the ocean. The Ocean has been her constant companion and a reminder that we are all part of something much bigger than just ourselves.

• After a week of dropping clues like bread crumbs, CrazyCris finally releases the identity of the Mystery Fish for World Oceans Day! Read the clues again and see if you can figure out without taking a peak further down in the post! ;o)

Be sure to come back over the weekend and check out the new participants! And remember, ANYONE can join in! Instructions are here. Just write your post, link back to here, and then let me know! :o)