Ele Willoughby, PhD

Day 17 #SciArtSeptember prompt is trawl.

Glass sponges are fragile, brittle, living animals with skeletons made of silica, the same material we use to make glass. Reefs, widespread during the age of dinosaurs, are now quite rare, & in fact, were long believed to have gone extinct 40 million years ago. Then in 1987 scientists discovered 9,000 year glass sponge reefs or 🧵
#linocut #sciart #printmaking #glassSponge #glassSpongeReef #rockfish #oceanLife #invertebrate #reductionPrint #BC #mastoArt

Sep 17, 2025 at 11:26amWeb
Show threadEle Willoughby, PhDSep 17, 2025
bioherms offshore northern British Columbia. All known glass sponge reefs today are found offshore BC, and its neighbours Alaska and Washington state. These important and beautiful biomes filter bacteria out of water, provide habitat for several species like spot prawns, halibut, squat lobsters and the rockfish in my print, store carbon and fertilize the ocean. These reefs in Canadian waters are now in marine protected areas as they can be destroyed, literally shattered, 🧵2/3
Show threadEle Willoughby, PhDSep 17, 2025

by pawn and crab traps, fishing lines, anchors and bottom trawling. Ocean warming and acidification are also damaging to these unique, vital ecosystems and natural wonders.

My 11" x 14" limited edition linocut print is made in watercolour paper and illustrates different glass sponges and a rock fish at the seafloor. The edition is limited to 8 prints.

https://minouette.etsy.com/listing/4366348949

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