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PHOTO Rapa Whelk Rapa whelks, native to Asia, have invaded the Chesapeake Bay and are raising concerns about economic and ecological impacts to the Bay region due to their shellfish diet. Scientists believe...MORE PHOTOS


	PHOTO MORE PHOTOS Invertebrates from the Gulf of Mexico The Smithsonian's Department of Invertebrate Zoology has a collection of over 57...
	BLOG POST MORE STORIES So You Think You're Smarter Than a Cephalopod? The blanket octopus can rip a poisonous tentacle from a Portuguese man-o-war and...
	IMAGE GALLERY MORE GALLERIES Bioluminescent Animals Photo Gallery Bioluminescence is one of the more captivating adaptations that have evolved in...

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					Lettuce Sea Slug May 20, 2013 - 8:57AMThe lettuce sea slug (Elysia crispata) has enlarged fleshy appendages that are folded over one another, with colors ranging from blue to green, with purple and red lining. The green coloring is what gives this mollusk it's common...

Searching for Crustaceans in the Deep Sea

May 16, 2013 - 9:04AM

In this video Smithsonian research zoologist Dr. Martha Nizinski takes...

Colorful Caribbean Crustaceans

May 15, 2013 - 8:12AM

Discovering new species is an exciting quest, right? Well, some parts are—...

SPOTLIGHT


A World Adrift: Life in the Sargassum The open ocean is surprisingly barren to the naked eye. Every now and again you will encounter a school of fish and their...

A Pregnant Seahorse Apr 9 2013 - 9:46am Instead of females, male seahorses carry the developing seahorse embryos in a kangaroo-like pouch. During mating season, the female deposits her eggs into the pouch, and the male fertilizes them. After about two weeks of development, out pop the seahorse fry, ready to swim off and explore the ocean...	Hermit Crab Without a Shell May 30 2012 - 11:45am Hermit crabs, like this one collected in Moorea, usually protect their soft, vulnerable abdomens from predators by reusing empty snail shells. They are picky home owners and they will trade shells with other crabs to get a better fit or a less damaged shell. This specimen shows the crab...
Little Sea Star Aug 14 2012 - 12:55pm It’s an honor to have something or someone named after you. Dr. David Pawson, Senior Research Scientist and Curator of Echinoderms at NMNH, has several genera and species, living and fossil, named after him. He says this little sea star, Pawsonaster parvus, is by far the prettiest!	Deep Ocean Diversity Dec 8 2009 - 4:08pm See some of the remarkable adaptations that deep-sea animals have evolved. Learn more about their habitat and how marine scientists research it in our Deep Ocean Exploration section.
Smithsonian Cephalopod Collection Jan 26 2010 - 11:45am This photo shows just a small part of the cephalopod collection at the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History. Shown here is Dr. Clyde Roper, a zoologist and squid expert.	The Search for an Elusive Ribbon Worm Mar 12 2013 - 2:40pm With 1,400 named species of ribbon worms inhabiting every ecosystem on earth, seeking one out should be an easy proposition. But I quickly learned that it can be quite daunting when you’re looking for certain teeny-tiny mud-loving worms. I recently accompanied Dr. Jon Norenburg and postdoctoral...
Foraminifera on the Seafloor Mar 26 2010 - 12:01pm Dr. Karen Bice studies the foraminifera in ocean sediment to better understand climate change.	Corals Threatened by Acid Seas Apr 5 2011 - 4:18pm Much of the carbon dioxide we emit into the atmosphere ends up in the ocean. As CO2 levels rise, seawater becomes more acidic. This change in chemistry poses a serious threat to marine organisms including snails, corals, such as in the above photo showing a single bleached polyp, and fish.
Squat Lobster from Reefs of North Carolina Jul 27 2011 - 11:45am Scientist Martha Nizinski holds a squat lobster (Eumunida picta) collected at the Lophelia reefs off Cape Lookout, North Carolina. Squat lobsters are extremely abundant there and are usually found perched on top of coral mounds. Nizinski’s research has provided a better understanding of the...	What is the Largest Squid? A Squid Size Diversity Chart Jan 26 2010 - 11:45am Squids come in a wide range of sizes, from smaller-than-your-thumb to the enormous giant squid. Giant squid grow up to 16 meters (50 feet). Learn more the life, range, and ecology of the giant squid in the Giant Squid section.
Tan Sea Urchin Aug 10 2012 - 4:05pm This tan urchin, Conolampas sigsbei, is one of only two known deep-sea urchins that cover their tops with small rocks and shells. Many shallow species cover themselves for reasons that have been determined experimentally. However, none of these explanations make sense for urchins living in the deep...	Corals and Coral Reefs Sep 12 2012 - 11:02am Coral reefs are the most diverse of all marine ecosystems. They teem with life, with perhaps one quarter of all ocean species depending on reefs for food and shelter. This is a remarkable statistic when you consider that reefs cover just a tiny fraction (less than one percent) of the earth’s...
Inside a Sperm Whale's Mouth Sep 20 2012 - 11:45am Sperm whales have conical teeth on their long, narrow, lower jaw. The teeth fit neatly into sockets in the upper jaw, which has no teeth. This arrangement is a perfect adaptation for slurping up soft-bodied squids—giant or otherwise. The sperm whale is listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN's Red List of...	Uncovering Biodiversity Before It Disappears Aug 22 2012 - 5:25pm Editor's Note: See more information and details about the organisms displayed in the slideshow here. Researchers who come to Curaçao to take part in DROP (Deep Reef Observation Project) aren’t running on sleep; they’re running on passion, curiosity and a drive to not waste a moment of...
Video of Cirrate Octopod aka Dumbo Octopus Dec 8 2009 - 7:02pm This octopod is sometimes called a “Dumbo” octopod because its fins resemble the ears of Disney’s Dumbo the elephant. The video was recorded in 2003 on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge by the Russian manned submersible MIR 2. More about deep ocean exploration can be found in our Deep Ocean Exploration...	Staurozoan: The Stalked Jellyfish Mar 22 2013 - 9:28am This rare staurozoan, or stalked jellyfish (Haliclystus californiensis) is about 2 centimeters in length and was collected off the coast of California. Unlike the traditional bell-shaped floating jellyfish, staurozoans live attached to rocks or other hard surfaces and mostly live in cold water...