Slipper lobsters make up the family Scyllaridae in the order Decapoda. There are around 90 species of these achelate (clawless) decapod crustaceans, split into 21 genera, which are placed in four subfamilies: Arctidinae, Ibacinae, Scyllarinae and Theninae.Slipper lobsters are … [Read more...]
Sea Urchin
Sea urchins are globular, spiny sea creatures that make up the class Echinoidea. There are around 950 species of sea urchin, and they inhabit the seabed of every ocean and every depth zone, from the tide line to 15,000 feet deep. The name urchin is an old word for hedgehog, which … [Read more...]
Giant Pacific Octopus
The giant Pacific octopus (Enteroctopus dofleini), also known as the North Pacific giant octopus, is a large marine cephalopod belonging to the genus Enteroctopus. The largest octopus species, it can be found along the coast of California, Oregon, Washington, British Columbia, … [Read more...]
Common Octopus
The common octopus (scientific name: Octopus vulgaris) is a mollusk belonging to the class Cephalopoda, the family Octopodidae and the genus Octopus. It is the most studied of all the octopus species.The common octopus is most famous for its eight legs. It is a cosmopolitan … [Read more...]
Giant Squid
The giant squid (Architeuthis dux) is, as its name suggests, a very large squid that belongs to the family Architeuthidae and the genus Architeuthis. These squid can reach a size of 12 to 13 m (39 to 43 ft) and exhibits deep-sea gigantism, meaning they are extremely large for … [Read more...]
Krill
Krill are small crustaceans of the order Euphausiacea, and are found in all the world's oceans. They belong to the class Malacostraca, which contains some 40,000 species of crustaceans, and includes the superorder Eucarida comprising the three orders, Euphausiacea (krill), … [Read more...]
Galapagos Sperm Whale
The Sperm Whale (Physeter macrocephalus) is the largest of all toothed whales and is the largest toothed animal alive, measuring up to 18 metres (60 feet) long. Sperm Whales can regularly be seen in the Galapagos waters. The Sperm whale was named after the milky-white waxy … [Read more...]
Harbour Porpoise
The harbour porpoise (Phocoena phocoena), also spelt harbor porpoise, is one of eight extant species of porpoise. It is one of the smallest cetacean in the sea. As its name implies, it stays close to coastal areas or river estuaries and as such is the most familiar porpoise to … [Read more...]