marine photos in Guardian

Complete photo array from the Guardian

The ornate and the magnificent by Jeff Rotman

Peeping out of the gloom, a shrimp perches on its fortress-like refuge – a magnificent sea anemone, at up to a metre (3ft) wide, the second-largest of all sea anemones. It’s a powerful picture created by an extreme low angle and gentle lighting that adds polish to the structure and a glow to the 2cm ornate anemone shrimp. The magnificent sea anemone is indeed the shrimp’s citadel, providing shelter and protection from predators, which won’t try to catch it when it’s tucked in among the umbrella of tentacles with their stinging cells.’

Photograph: Jeff Rotman/Unforgettable Underwater Photography/NHM

Opening to the underworld by Christian Vizl

‘The view from below in the still water of the Aktun Ha cenote in Mexico is like looking into a magical aquarium. A natural summer algal bloom colours the top layer of water green, and though the undersides of the ageing lily leaves have been lit by a low light from strobes, they are truly pink. Their stems reach up several metres from the bottom of the wide cenote pool, but though most of them never reach the surface, for much of the year the water is so crystal clear that there is enough light for them to photosynthesise.’

Photograph: Christian Vizl/Unforgettable Underwater Photography/NHM

Big fish fight by Jordi Chias Pujol

‘These two huge dusky groupers are in a violent struggle. The prize, overlying an undersea volcanic pinnacle off the Azores, is a strip of prime spawning territory into which the owner can attract females. It encompasses a rocky retreat, but the key aspect is that a strong current runs overhead – ideal for carrying away fertilised eggs. Males start out as females, but when they get to be 10-15 years old, and if there aren’t too many males around, they change sex.’

Photograph: Jordi Chias Pujol/Unforgettable Underwater Photography/NHM [emphasis added]