MudSkippers and Mangroves

Mudskippers are fascinating fish. They spend more time skipping and flipping around in the dense mud than in the water. Their front fins are elongated for 'walking' on land and they can breath through their skin as long as it remains damp. They can also retain water in their gills to help breath out of water. Once they used up all the oxygen in the water, they need to replace it with fresh supply.

When defending their territories, mudskippers display their dorsal fins and push each other around with their open mouths.

Shown: Blue-spotted mudskipper (Boleophthalmus boddarti) This particular species is very common in mangrove communities in India's west coast and Southeast Asia.

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ABOUT THE ARTIST

Amanda Zimmerman is a scientific illustrator. She has done work for Project Seagrass in 

the United Kingdom and Carnegie Museum of Natural History in Pittsburgh, PA.  She is currently writing and illustrating a book on mangroves. To receive updates about

Secrets of the Mangroves, subscribe to  updates from my studio.

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Prints available at  Redbubble and Etsy store.

Mapping the Sundarbans (would drive a cartographer mad)

The ecologically rich Sundarbans are one of the planets largest mangrove communities. Here in Bangladesh, the Ganges, Padma, Brahmaputra and Meghna rivers all converge into the Bay of Bengal. It is a meeting of freshand saltwater; a diverse place of forest, beaches, tidal flats, marsh and swamps lands. Once measuring around 16,700 square kilometres (6,400 sq mi), the Sundarbans have now reduced to one third its previous size.

It is home to Bengal tigers, exotic birds, the chital horin (spotted deer), the critically endangered estuarine crocodile and the Indian python.

The Sundarbans are also very time consuming to draw.

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AMANDA ZIMMERMAN

Discover more about Mangroves when you sign up for updates from my studio which include progress reports on my forthcoming book: Secrets of the Mangroves. Subscribers are automatically entered in a drawing each month for a free 5x7 print of their choice form my Etsy store.  

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 You can follow me on Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin and  Google+

If you are interested in purchasing prints of my work, please visit my Redbubble and Etsy store.