the whitespotted bamboo shark is part of the wobbegong family. the word wobbegong itself comes from an Australian word with the meaning "shaggy beard," in reference to the barbels these sharks use to find their food and sense the ocean floor. the alternative word for wobbegong sharks is carpet sharks, as they tend to have very pretty patterns like a woven carpet. however i think wobbegong sounds much more fun.

these sharks are nocturnal, and can even be kept as a pet under the right conditions. they're a marine species, and for the most part are native to the pacific coral reefs of Indonesia and China, but can be found all the way from India to Japan. whitespotted bamboo sharks also kept in aquariums and live up to twenty years or more in captivity.

they're my first shark for fish of the month, as wobbegong sharks are generally some of my favorite kinds of sharks with how round and patterned they are. they're our second coral reef dwelling fish, which is hardly a suprise as 25% of marine life relies on the health of coral reefs. even more so with how little of the ocean is known, that 25% feels so much bigger because of the proximity coral reefs have to us in comparison to the lower parts of the ocean. it's there we can find the fish that are colorful and patterned for camoflauge and can be supported in aquariums, we see them all the time. but at the moment, 84% of coral reefs are undergoing a mass bleaching, as the algae producing coral's main food source cannot survive in warming waters. generally, the average person isn't to blame for this; that isn't to say that this would happen if not for human industrialization and pollution.

i'm not under the impression a random neocities blog will change anyone's mind on such a divisive topic as global warming, but i encourage you to research it yourself. the steps needed to keep ecosystems safe aren't going to be solved by individuals. the preservation of our oceans require systematic change to how governments and corporations operate, and the policies that hold them accountable.