Candlelight dinner with wine, fresh bouquet of red roses, maybe a box of chocolates… Sounds like a romantic Valentine’s Day date right? Actually, the whole V-Day “ritual” is a little bit dated and has, ironically, lost its romance. Thankfully, the ocean is full of romance for us to draw inspiration from. Let us look at some examples of romance found in the ocean.

1. Art

“Picaso” Pufferfish impressing the ladies. Photo credit.

Impress your loved one with art like how a male Japanese pufferfish (Torquigener sp.) would swim right above sandy bottoms to create intricate sand art to attract a female to deposit her eggs in the middle of the sandy masterpiece

2.Dance 

Awwwwww. Photo credit.

How about dancing with your partner? Seahorses (Hippocampus sp.) dance passionately for hours (sometimes even days!) in courtship. An important part to this passionate dance is to be in sync with your partner, just like seahorses! You do not want to be stepping on your partner’s foot, do you?

3. Belly Flops

Super-manta! Photo credit.

You read that right! Belly flops! Male Mobula and Manta rays (Myliobatidae) breach high above the water, flapping their “wings”, so that they can land hardly, and loudly, back onto the water surface. Researchers hypothesise this behaviour to be a mating ritual. Maybe the bigger and louder the belly flop, the higher chances for the ray, or maybe you, to attract a mate.

Now that you have read some romantic gestures that work in the ocean, maybe try it out on land this for Valentine’s Day. All the best!

Tags: nature