Life Science, Earth Science, Astronomy, and Exploration
Meet the conspicuous glowing millipedes of Sequoia National Park; the brightest of all the Motyxia species. They glow, they make hydrogen cyanide, they star as the main antagonist in the … Continue Reading Invertebrate of the Week #20 – Motyxia millipedes (Motyxia sequoia)
Meet an unusual group of octopuses in which the females make paper-thin shells out of arm-gland secretions and the males can’t mate without losing one of their limbs. Despite the … Continue Reading Invertebrate of the Week #19 – Argonauts (Genus: Argonauta)
Thorny oysters are a genus of bivalve molluscs and are the only genus within the family Spondylidae. The term ‘thorny oyster’ is a misnomer since this organisms aren’t closely related to true oysters and are … Continue Reading Invertebrate of the Week #18 – Variable Thorny Oyster (Spondylus varius)
A total of 114 times in 110 years. That’s how many times researchers have observed the elusive Stygiomedusa gigantea, a giant deep sea jelly with a bell 1.4 meters wide and broad … Continue Reading Invertebrate of the Week #17 – Stygiomedusa gigantea
This week we are highlighting the distinctive nudibranch Peltodoris atromaculata. A southern European species, this spotted Discodorid sea slug can be found throughout the Mediterranean and select locations off the western coast … Continue Reading Invertebrate of the Week #16 – Peltodoris atromaculata
The stars of the show this week are the wonderfully weird Gorgonocephalus basket stars. Members of the Class Ophiurodea, these bizarre deep sea echinoderms are members of the same evolutionary group that brought us all … Continue Reading Invertebrate of the Week #15 – Gorgonocephalus Basket Stars
Invertebrate of the Week returns with this emerald-colored stunner. Meet Elysia chlorotica, often hailed as a “solar-powered marine sea slug” and affectionately named the “Eastern Emerald Elysia.” E. chlorotica inhabits the waters … Continue Reading Invertebrate of the Week #14 – Elysia chlorotica: a (possibly) “solar-powered” marine sea slug
This ‘Invertebrate of the Week’ is posted in support of a crowdfunded research appeal involving these remarkable little spiders. Learn more about how you can help! Jumping spiders (Family: Salticidae) are a remarkable group of animals … Continue Reading Invertebrate of the Week #13 – Habronattus Jumping Spiders
Acknowledgement: Hat tip to Paul Bee (@solitarybee) and John Walters (@JWentomologist) for bringing this insect to my attention. Meet Osmia bicolor, this week’s Invertebrate of the Week. Unlike the more social … Continue Reading Invertebrate of the Week #12 – Osmia bicolor: a shell-nesting bee
Up to this point, arthropods have dominated the Invertebrate of the Week series so I am going to give them a rest and head over to a different invertebrate lineage: the sponges … Continue Reading Invertebrate of the Week #11 – ‘Venus’s Flower Basket’ (Euplectella aspergillum)
Meet the spectacular Spiny Flower Mantis (Pseudocreobotra wahlbergii) which hails from Africa. P. wahlbergii is a member of a polyphyletic group of mantises referred to as flower mantises which employ of … Continue Reading Invertebrate of the Week #10 – Spiny Flower Mantis (Pseudocreobotra wahlbergii)
On November 7, 2007 a Shell Oil Company ROV team was working to retrieve drilling equipment on the seabed near the Perdido project in the Gulf of Mexico. The project … Continue Reading Invertebrate of the Week #9 – Bigfin Squid (Magnapinnidae)
Today we are featuring the beautiful metallic beetle Charidotella sexpunctata, also known as the Golden tortoise beetle. These North American beetles are small, measuring approximately 5 – 7 mm in length and are … Continue Reading Invertebrate of the Week #8 – Golden Tortoise Beetle (Charidotella sexpunctata)
This week we are showcasing a dashing little crustacean known colloquially as the Sally Lightfoot Crab (Grapsus grapsus). Sally Lightfoot’s can grow to a maximum carapace size of ~8cm and are … Continue Reading Invertebrate of the Week #7 – Sally Lightfoot Crab (Grapsus grapsus)
If you’re a young seabird, this week’s Invertebrate of the Week is right out of your nightmares. A recent article in Marine Ornithology demonstrated that these flashy tide-pool denizens are capable of … Continue Reading Invertebrate of the Week #6 – Giant Green Sea Anemone (Anthopleura xanthogrammica)
It’s good to be back! To kick off my return to posting, I would like to introduce a conspicuous spider from the world’s third largest island, Borneo. According to photographer … Continue Reading Invertebrate of the Week #5 – Opadometa species
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