Cyclosa conica is a small spider with no common name. It is an orb weaver, and it is easily recognized by the way it strings together the dead bodies of insects and other debris and hangs it near the center of its web. It hides on this string of debris, and its natural coloration makes it extremely difficult to see until it moves. One of its defenses against predators is to blend in with this debris and to feign death when disturbed. These spiders are small; the females range from 5.3 mm to 7.5 mm, and the males range from 3.6 mm to 4 mm.
The webs of these spiders are characterized by a vertical stripe running down the center. This stripe, or stabilimentum, is composed of dead prey and other debris and is used as a hiding place for the spider. The material in the stabilimentum may also serve as a decoy to mislead predators into attacking the debris, giving the spider time to escape.


This species is often listed in field guides as inedible, or not recommended for consumption due to its tough texture. Michael Kuo, in his 2007 book on edible mushrooms, lists the taste as "mediocre", and comments "the devil's urn is not as bad as I thought it was going to be. It's not good, mind you, but it would be possible to eat it with a forced smile if your Aunt Wanda served it to you."


Urnula craterium was first described in 1822 by American botanist Lewis David de Schweinitz as Peziza craterium, based on a specimen found in North Carolina. The species first appeared in the scientific literature under its current name when Elias Magnus Fries described the new genus Urnula in 1849, and set Peziza craterium as the type species. In 1896, German mycologist Heinrich Rehm removed the species from Urnula – transferring it to the genus Geopyxis – and replaced the type species with Urnula terrestris, a peripherally related species. This restructuring resulted in a taxomically untenable situation in which the genus Urnula consisted of a single species with ambiguous resemblance to the original species (described by Fries) upon which the genus was based. According to Elsie Kupfer, who had written Rehm to clarify the rationale for his decision:
Urnula craterium was placed with its related species under Geopyxis, because Geopyxis was established by Persoon before Urnula by Fries; and that in order to retain the genus Urnula, under which Saccardo had placed Podophacidium terrestre of Niessl, he (Rehm) restricted the genus to this latter fungus.
As Kupfer explains, Rehm did not justify why he believed Urnula craterium should be allied to Geopyxis, or why Podophacidium terrestre should be considered an Urnula. Kupfer's macro- and microscopic analysis of tissues from these and related genera clearly showed the inconsistency in Rehm's taxonomical choices, and that Urnula craterium represented an entirely different genus not related to Geopyxis; Fries's naming was restored.
The genus name means "little urn"; the specific epithet is derived from the Latin cratera, referring to a type of bowl used in antiquity to mix wine with water. It is commonly known as the devil's urn and the gray urn.


Urnula craterium grows singly or clustered together, usually attached to sticks and branches (especially oak) that are partially buried in the ground. The teleomorph state is saprobic, and decomposes hardwood; the anamorph state is parasitic, and causes a canker of various hardwoods, including oaks, hickories, basswood and beech. It is often found in deciduous forests, although it is sometimes inconspicuous due to its dark color, and because it may be partially covered with leaf litter. One of the first fleshy fungi to appear from March to May, U. craterium has been dubbed a "harbinger of spring", and is sometimes encountered under melting snow.
The distribution of U. craterium includes eastern North America, Europe (including the Czech Republic, Finland, Spain,) Japan, and China. It is red-listed as critically endangered in the Czech Republic.


The fruit bodies begin from dense, black mycelium on the surface of oak branches in contact with the ground. Starting out as rolls of cylindrical tissue 1 or more centimeters long and 3–4 mm wide, they expand slowly over the winter, and grow rapidly in the spring when the weather becomes warmer.
The goblet-shaped fruit body (technically an ascocarp) is 3–4 cm (1.2–1.6 in) in diameter and 4–6 cm (1.6–2.4 in) deep; initially it is closed, but opens as it matures, leaving a ragged or smooth inrolled margin around a round opening. The flesh of the ascocarp walls is tough and initially gelatinous, later becoming leathery. The exterior of the ascocarp is brownish black to black, with a velvety surface, while the interior spore-bearing surface, the hymenium, is brownish black in color, usually somewhat paler than the outside. The outer surface may be partially covered with small flakelike patches of tissue. When viewed with a magnifying glass, the "hairs" (fungal hyphae) making up the outer velvety surface are variable in length, and are thick-walled, blunt, and appear to wind from side to side (flexuous). The ascocarp is connected to a stalk that is typically 3–4 cm (1.2–1.6 in) long by 0.4–0.8 cm (0.2–0.3 in) thick, with black mycelia at its base.


The species is a choice edible mushroom. Maitake has been consumed for centuries in China and Japan where it is one of the major culinary mushrooms. The mushroom is used in many Japanese dishes, such as nabemono. The softer caps must be thoroughly cooked.


Grifola frondosa (also known as hen-of-the-woods, maitake (舞茸, "dancing mushroom") in Japanese, ram's head or sheep's head) is a polypore mushroom that grows at the base of trees, particularly old growth oaks or maples. It is typically found in late summer to early autumn. It is native to China, Europe, and North America.


Like the sulphur shelf mushroom, G. frondosa is a perennial fungus that often grows in the same place for a number of years in succession. It occurs most prolifically in the northeastern regions of the United States, but has been found as far west as Idaho.
G. frondosa grows from an underground tuber-like structure known as a sclerotium, about the size of a potato. The fruiting body, occurring as large as 100 centimetres (40 inches), rarely 150 cm (60 in), is a cluster consisting of multiple grayish-brown caps which are often curled or spoon-shaped, with wavy margins and 2–10 cm (1–4 in) broad. The undersurface of each cap bears about one to three pores per millimeter, with the tubes rarely deeper than 3 mm (1⁄8 in). The milky-white stipe (stalk) has a branchy structure and becomes tough as the mushroom matures.
In Japan, the maitake can grow to more than 45 kilograms (100 pounds).


There are no look-alikes that are toxic. This is a very distinct mushroom except for its cousin the black staining mushroom which is similar in taste but rubbery. Edible species which look similar to Grifola frondosa include Meripilus sumstinei (which stains black), Sparassis spathulata and Laetiporus sulphureus, another edible bracket fungus that is commonly called chicken of the woods or "sulphur shelf".


The Dungeness crab (Metacarcinus magister)  is a species of crab inhabiting eelgrass beds and water bottoms along the west coast of North America. It typically grows to 20 cm (7.9 in) across the carapace and is a popular seafood. Its common name comes from the port of Dungeness, Washington, United States, where it is "a prized crustacean that supports the most valuable fishery on the west coast.”


The carapace widths of mature Dungeness crabs may reach 10 inches, or 25.4 centimeters, but are typically 6-7 inches, or approximately 15-18 centimeters. They are a popular delicacy, and are the most commercially important crab in the Pacific Northwest, as well as the western states generally. The annual Dungeness Crab and Seafood Festival is held in Port Angeles, Washington each October.
Dungeness crabs have a wide, long, hard shell, which they must periodically moult to grow; this process is called ecdysis. They have five pairs of legs, which are similarly armoured, the foremost pair of which ends in claws the crab uses both as defense and to tear apart large food items. The crab uses its smaller appendages to pass the food particles into its mouth. Once inside the crab's stomach, food is further digested by the "gastric mill", a collection of tooth-like structures. M. magister prefers to eat clams, other crustaceans and small fish, but is also an effective scavenger. Dungeness crabs can bury themselves completely in the sand if threatened.


The Dungeness crab is considered a delicacy in the United States and Canada.  Long before the area was settled by Europeans, Indigenous peoples throughout the crustacean's range had the crab as a traditional part of their diet and harvested them every year at low tide. The flesh has what is considered to be a delicate flavour and slightly sweet taste. Today they are an integral part of the cuisines of California, British Columbia, and the Pacific Northwest and traditionally feature in dishes like Crab Louie  or Cioppino.
About one-quarter of the crab's weight is meat. Dungeness crabs can typically be purchased either live or cooked. Live crabs are cooked simply by dropping them into boiling salt water, waiting for a boil to return, and then allowing it to continue for 15 minutes, after which time the crabs are removed and placed into cold water to cool, and then cleaned. Another method of preparing crab is called half backing. Half backing is done by flipping the crab upside down and chopping it in half (from head to "tail"), after which the guts and gills can be scooped or hosed out. Many consider half backing to be superior to cooking the entire crab, because the meat is not contaminated by the flavor or toxins of the guts. Furthermore, half backed crabs boil faster or can be quickly steamed instead of boiled. Two common tools for removing crab meat from the shell are a crab cracker and a shrimp fork. Sometimes, a cleaver, mallet, or small hammer is used for cracking Dungeness crab, but the use of these devices is not recommended, as the integrity of the meat may be compromised due to the impact.


This very common species inhabits different biotopes, forests, heath and moorland, spruce forests, beech forests. meadows, human settlements and gardens, from the lowlands to the mountains.


This species occurs in Europe, North Africa, Asia and in North America.


Mitopus morio can reach a body length of about 4–6 millimetres (0.16–0.24 in) in males, of about 4–8.5 millimetres (0.16–0.33 in) in females.  However the body size is quite variable. The body is ovate, slightly narrower in the male. The head shows various timy bumps. The eyes are small and narrow, longer than wider, with a varying number of small spikes around the eyebrow. Also color is rather variable, but males are usually brown-colored, where as females are darker. A dark irregular saddle-like area is always present on the back, sometimes with narrow white edges and a longitudinal pinkish stripe in the centre. The legs varies from yellowish-brown to dark brown and are thin and long.  The length of the longest of the second pair of legs is 30-40 mm. Males have sharp, forward-pointing tooth under first segment of chelicera.
This species is rather similar and may be confused with the females of Phalangium opilio.


Adults can be found from the middle of May until the middle of November, depending on the location. Eggs hatch at the end of March.  These harvestmen feed on small insects and other small arthropods. Mitopus morio has been observed to walk using its first, third, and fourth sets of legs, using the unusually long second pair of legs to feel in front of it and probe its environment.


Although small, the deceiver is edible and mild-tasting. The tough stalks are usually not eaten. It is one of many mushrooms traditionally eaten by the Zapotec people of Oaxaca in Mexico. However, it is important to distinguish it from potentially lethal small brown mushrooms.


Laccaria laccata is found in scattered troops in wooded areas, and on heathland often in poor soil. It is very common in all of the northern temperate zones, but tends to favor cool weather. L. laccata is mycorrhizal with several types of trees, including members of the Pinaceae (Pines), Fagaceae (Beech), and Betulaceae (Birch). It is found across Europe and North America, south into Mexico and Costa Rica. Laccaria species are mycorrhizal, and thought by some to be pioneer species.


The deceiver is a small mushroom with a cap measuring 2–6 cm (1–2.5 in) in diameter, convex when young and later flattening or even depressed in the center. It can be various shades of salmon pink, brick-red, or shades of orange or brown when moist or young, and duller and paler when dry. The fibrous stipe is 2–10 cm (1–4 in) high and 3–10 mm (0–0.5 in) wide. The irregular gills are widely spaced and decurrent or adnexed, and of similar color to the cap, though whiten with spores as the mushroom matures. The spore print is white, and the round spiny spores are 7–10 μm in diameter. The flesh is thin and has little taste.
Formerly considered a subspecies by French mycologist René Maire, the close deceiver (Laccaria proxima) is a European relative with a fine scaly cap and found in wetter habitats. Microscopically, its spores are narrower and more oval-shaped.
In California, what was thought to be L. laccata under eucalyptus has turned out to be the Australian species Laccaria fraterna. Other similar species include Laccaria amethysteo-occidentalis and Laccaria bicolor.


Tetraclita rubescens , the pink volcano barnacle, is a species of sessile barnacle in the family Tetraclitidae.
T. rubescens is a sessile barnacle with a diameter usually to 30 mm, rarely to 50 mm. Exoskeletal wall consists of four plates with no basal plate (all other local acorn barnacles have 6 plates). The shells of adults are pink to reddish and appear thatched, while the shells of (uneroded) juveniles are white (Morris et al. 1980).


Common in middle to low intertidal zones on rocks exposed to strong surf from Cape Mendocino, Northern California to Baja California (Carlton 2007).


The Jonah crab (Cancer borealis) is a marine brachyuran crab that inhabits waters along the east coast of North America from Newfoundland to Florida. Jonah crabs possess a rounded, rough-edged carapace with small light spots, and robust claws with dark brown-black tips. The maximum reported carapace width for males is 222 mm, while females rarely exceed 150 mm. It is the closest relative to the European brown crab in the Western Atlantic.


According to stomach content analysis on individuals from the Gulf of Maine, the diet of Cancer borealis consists of mussels, arthropods, snails, and some algal species. Blue mussels (Mytilus edulis) composed more than 50% of analyzed stomach contents.


Jonah crab has a sweet taste, though it is not as meaty as the West Coast Dungeness crab.  The claws can be served steamed and served chilled over ice for an appetizer or the meat used for crab cakes, among many other preparations. Seafood based broths and Asian style soups can be made from the shells and the texture is as fine as snow crab but as firm as Florida stone when prepared properly.


Knobbed whelks are native to the North Atlantic coast of North America from Cape Cod, Massachusetts to northern Florida. This species is common along the Georgia coast. It is the state shell of New Jersey and Georgia.


The knobbed whelk lives subtidally and is migratory, alternating between deep and shallow water, depending on the time of year.
During the weather extremes of the summer and winter months, these sea snails live in deep water, at depths of up to 48 m. In the milder weather of the spring and fall they live in shallow water, on near-shore or intertidal mud flats and sand flats.
On the shallow-water mud flats whelks prey on oysters, clams, and other marine bivalves. They wedge a bivalve open using the edge of their shell, and insert their long proboscis to eat the flesh of their victim. They rasp at the flesh using their radula, a rough tongue-like organ that has thousands of tiny denticles (tooth-like protrusions).


Mating and egg laying occur during the spring and fall migration. Internally fertilized eggs are surrounded by a transparent mass of albumen, a gel-like material, and are laid in protective flat, rounded egg capsules joined to form a paper-like chain of egg cases, commonly called a "Mermaid's Necklace". On average each capsule contains 0–99 eggs, with most strings having 40–160 capsules. After laying their egg cases, female knobbed whelk will bury one end of the egg case into the substrate, thus providing an anchor for the developing fertilized eggs and preventing the string of egg cases from washing ashore where it would dehydrate. Fertilized eggs develop in the capsules.  Young emerge with a shell approximately 2–4 mm in length.
Young are preyed upon by crustaceans, horseshoe crabs, and fish, primarily drum species.  Adult whelks are eaten by loggerhead sea turtles.


The knobbed whelk (Busycon carica)  is a species of  very large predatory sea snail, or in the US, a whelk, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Busyconidae, the busycon whelks.
The knobbed whelk is the second largest species of busycon whelk, ranging in size up to 12 in (305 mm).


Scutigera coleoptrata, also known as the house centipede, is a species of centipede that is typically yellowish-grey and has up to 15 pairs of long legs. Originating in the Mediterranean region, it has spread to other parts of the world, where it can live in human homes. It is an insectivore; it kills and eats other arthropods, such as insects and arachnids.


S. coleoptrata is indigenous to the Mediterranean region, but it has spread through much of Europe, Asia, North America and South America. It is thought to have first been introduced to the Americas in Mexico and Guatemala and now it reaches north into Canada and south to Argentina.
In the United States, it spread north from the southern states, reaching Pennsylvania in 1849, New York in 1885, and Massachusetts and Connecticut in about 1890. In 2009, its distribution extended from Virginia in the east to the coast of California in the west. It is also found in the Pacific Northwest, where it  appears to be somewhat less common than in other areas of the country.
In 2011, it was first reported in Chile, in the Metropolitan and Los Lagos regions.
In South Africa, they have been sighted in the Western Cape, in and around Cape Town (sightings have been reported in Pinelands; Vredehoek, Mowbray, Edgemead, Green Point, Zonnebloem, Woodstock; Stellenbosch, Simon's Town,  Rooi-Els,  Pringle Bay and Gordon's Bay) and also in KwaZulu-Natal, in the city of Pietermaritzburg. They are also found around the Garden Route, including Oudtshoorn, Mossel Bay, George and Knysna, and in Bloemfontein in the Free State.
In 2013 they were recorded in Lichinga, Mozambique, and in 2017 in Pemba and at Lujeri Tea Estate, Mulanje, Southern Malawi.
They have been found in eastern and southern Australia, from Perth to Adelaide, South Australia, to Sydney, New South Wales and in Tasmania. Other countries they have been found in include New Zealand, Japan and South Korea.
Although known to exist in South and Southeast Asia, S. Coleoptrata is relatively rare.


House centipedes feed on spiders, bed bugs, termites, cockroaches, silverfish, ants, and other household arthropods. They administer venom through forcipules. These are not part of their mandibles, so strictly speaking they sting rather than bite. They are mostly nocturnal hunters. Despite their developed eyes, they seem to rely mostly on their antennae when hunting. Their antennae are sensitive to both smells and tactile information. They use both their mandibles and their legs for holding prey. This way they can deal with several small insects at the same time. To capture prey they either jump onto it or use their legs in a technique described as "lassoing". Using their legs to beat prey has also been described. Like other centipedes they can stridulate.
In a feeding study, S. coleoptrata showed the ability to distinguish between possible prey, avoiding dangerous insects. They also adapted their feeding pattern to the type of hazard the prey might pose to them. For wasps, they retreat after applying the venom to give it time to take effect. When the centipede is in danger of becoming prey itself, it can detach any legs that have become trapped. House centipedes have been observed to groom their legs by curling around and grooming them with their forcipules.

In 1902, C. L. Marlatt, an entomologist with the United States Department of Agriculture, wrote a brief description of the house centipede:
It may often be seen darting across floors with very great speed, occasionally stopping suddenly and remaining absolutely motionless, presently to resume its rapid movements, often darting directly at inmates of the house, particularly women, evidently with a desire to conceal itself beneath their dresses, and thus creating much consternation.


The body of an adult Scutigera coleoptrata is typically 25 to 35 mm (0.98 to 1.38 in) in length, although larger specimens are sometimes encountered. Up to 15 pairs of long legs are attached to the rigid body. Together with the antennae they give the centipede an appearance of being 75 to 100 mm (3 to 4 in) in length. The delicate legs enable it to reach surprising speeds of up to 0.4 meters per second (1.3 ft/s) running across floors, up walls and along ceilings. Its body is yellowish-grey and has three dark dorsal stripes running down its length; the legs also have dark stripes. S. coleoptrata has developed automimicry in that its tail-like hind legs present the appearance of antennae. When the centipede is at rest, it is not easy to tell its cranial end from its caudal end.
Unlike most other centipedes, house centipedes and their close relatives have well-developed faceted eyes.


Pollicipes polymerus, commonly known as the gooseneck barnacle or leaf barnacle, is a species of stalked barnacle. It is found, often in great numbers, on rocky shores on the Pacific coasts of North America.


Pollicipes polymerus is attached to rocks or other objects by a strong, rubbery stalk, the peduncle, which is up to 10 centimetres (4 in) long. It has a muscular interior and the leathery surface is covered in bands of minute spiny scales on short stalks. The capitulum, at the end of the peduncle, is up to 5 centimetres (2 in) long and contains the rest of the body including all the limbs and other appendages except the first pair of antennae. The outside of the capitulum bears five strengthening calcareous plates corresponding with the plates that protect an acorn barnacle. The largest of these is the carina, on the morphologically dorsal side of the capitulum, with a pair of smaller scuta and terga on either side below. Further calcification occurs from other centres on the capitulum with the formation of many small scales. The thoracic crustacean appendages are modified into feather-like cirri. They project through the aperture at the end of the capitulum and are used for feeding.


The native distribution is the Caucasus, Anatolia and, arguably, the Balkans. It has also invaded many other regions since ancient times, likely assisted by humans.
Eastern native range with main genetic diversity of the species:
Anatolia (Turkey)
Georgia
Azerbaijan
Armenia
Northern Iran
Balkans (probably native):
Albania
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Bulgaria
Croatia
Greece
Macedonia
Serbia
Turkey
Other countries:
Israel
Syria
Russia - could be native in Caucasus, invasive in some other regions
Italy - probably invasive
Hungary - probably invasive
Romania - probably invasive
Ukraine - invasive, in Crimea ("Helix taurica Krynicki, 1833") at least since early 19 century, probably much longer, these populations originated from Anatolia; other colonies of a different lineage also appear since 2000s in mainland part of Southern Ukraine and in Crimea as well
Czech Republic - invasive, since 2009, as of 2011 the only locality is Prague-Žižkov
Slovakia - invasive, since 2013, as of 2014 the only locality is in Bratislava
France - invasive
Great Britain - invasive, since 2009, at Wimbledon


Adult snails weigh about 20-25 g.
The width of the shell is 35-60 mm. The height of the shell is 25–45 mm.
This species of snail makes and uses love darts.


They are found in wooded areas and dwell on trees.


Dolomedes tenebrosus or dark fishing spider is a fishing spider found in the USA and Canada.
It is able to bite humans but will run from people. In most cases, the bite is no more severe than a bee or wasp sting.


Female bodies are 15–26 mm; males are 7–13 mm. Legs range from 50–90 mm. The spider is a pale to dark brown colour with several chevron markers and lighter stripes around its legs. It is similar to D. scriptus. The legs are banded with brown/black annulations on the femora and reddish-brown/black annulations on the tibia.


Thelacantha (Asian spinybacked orbweaver) is a genus of orb-weaver spiders containing the single species, Thelacantha brevispina. It was first described by A. W. M. van Hasselt in 1882, and has been found in Australia, Madagascar, and across southern Asia from India to Philippines, including Japan. It has also been introduced into Hawaii. T. brevispina is closely related those in the genus Gasteracantha, and was briefly synonymized with it in 1859, but revalidated in 1974. Saito described three other Thelacantha species in 1933, which were later synonymized with T. brevispina.


Females grow to about 6 to 10 millimetres (0.24 to 0.39 in) long, while males reach a size of 3 to 5 millimetres (0.12 to 0.20 in). Females have six abdominal spines ending in distinct sharp points. Most have two large white spots on the upper surface of their abdomens, which are otherwise mottled with black, brown, and white patterns.


Deroceras reticulatum is native to Europe, North Africa and the Atlantic Islands. It occurs widely in Europe, but is more rare and restricted to cultivated fields in the southeast, particularly in the Balkans, and is probably absent from Greece and the Bulgarian mountains. In the north and central European lowlands, Great Britain, and Ireland, it is probably the most widely occurring slug. In northern Scandinavia it is scarce, and is mainly found as a synanthrope.
This species occurs in countries and islands including:
Great Britain
Ireland
Austria
Bulgaria
Czech Republic – least concern (LC)
Netherlands
Poland
Slovakia
Sweden
Latvia
Ukraine
The species has been widely introduced as a synanthrope to many regions:
North America, in parts of Northern Michigan and Southern Michigan
Colombia
Peru
Argentina – major slug pest in Buenos Aires province
Saint Helena
Tasmania
New Zealand
central Asia
Canada


This species is omnivorous, feeding mainly on fresh leaves and fruits or seedings. Deroceras reticulatum is a serious pest of agricultural crops, garden cultivations and horticulture. After several years with continuous moist weather conditions abundance can seriously increase.


Various carabid beetles are predators of Deroceras reticlatum, including:
the European garden beetle Carabus nemoralis, is a beneficial predator (from the human perspective) because it eats the young of this species and also their eggs.
Pterostichus melanarius
Pterostichus madidus
Nebria brevicollis
Scarites anthracinus eats eggs and slugs in Argentina.
Poecilus cupreus


The bacterium Moraxella osloensis is a mutualistic symbiont of the slug-parasitic nematode Phasmarhabditis hermaphrodita. In nature, Phasmarhabditis hermaphrodita vectors Moraxella osloensis into the shell cavity of the slug host Deroceras reticulatum in which the bacteria multiply and kill the slug.
Deroceras reticulatum can transfer Escherichia coli on its body surface.
Parasites of Deroceras reticulatum include:
Parelaphostrongylus tenuis


As all other Deroceras it has a short keel at the back of the body. Deroceras reticulatum is very variable in colour, creamy or light coffee cream, rarely blackish spotted (slugs with spots may appear blackish). Behind the mantle there is the dark spots form a reticulate pattern. The skin is thick. Mucus is colourless, on irritation milky white. The slug cannot be distinguished from many other Deroceras species based only on its external appearance.
This slug can be up to 40–60 mm long (preserved 25–30 mm). The size varies according to the habitat.
Reproductive system: Penis is fleshy and with a silky sheen, in the shape of an irregular sac, in fully mature specimens divided into 2 parts by a deep lateral constriction. Penial gland has very variable shape, usually a few branches or a single long branch. Stimulator is large, conical and narrow. Retractor of the penis is inserted laterally. Vas deferens opens into penis wall facing the external body side. Rectal caecum is large.
This slug can travel up to 40 feet (12.2 m) in one night.


Deroceras reticulatum is almost exclusively restricted to cultivated areas, usually in open habitats, in meadows, near roadsides, in ruins, gardens and parks, not inside forests. External appearance is very similar to Deroceras rodnae, Deroceras praecox and the internal anatomy is very similar to Deroceras turcicum, but those three species lives in natural habitats – in woods – and they co-occur with Deroceras reticulatum very rarely. It shelters under stones and ground litter (It does not burrow into the soil). It is active at night.


This species is very common in Southern Europe. Its overall distribution extends as far east as Istanbul and across the Bosphorus from there. It is uncommon in Britain and central Europe. Its distribution in North Africa is poorly documented.


The survival of this species is threatened in Central Europe by intensive farming, also in vineyards by habitat destruction, fertilizers, insecticides, herbicides and fungicides. The species has seriously declined in central and eastern England. This species is endangered in Switzerland and Ireland, and vulnerable in Germany.


The shell of this species is thick-walled, ovoid and slightly conical. It is composed of 4 ½ - 5 convex spires with the last one as the largest one. The surface of the shell is reticulated with dark spots and discontinued bands of beige and violet colours. The thick and chalky operculum has an eccentric calcified nucleus, and bears a spiral sculpture. The length of the shells varies between 12.5 mm and 15.8 mm and its diameter between 7 mm and 11.5 mm.
The waves of contractions on the surface of the foot are longitudinal, passing from side to side.


This snail lives only in areas where there are high levels of calcium carbonate such as on limestone or chalk rock, and where there is loose and friable soil. This snail is also sometimes found in coastal sand dunes where the sand has many shell fragments mixed in.


The legs of orb-weaver spiders are specialized for spinning orb webs. The webs are built by the larger females who hang head down in the center of the web or remain hidden in nearby foliage, with one claw hooked to a signal line connected to the main orb waiting for a disturbance to signal the arrival of prey. Prey is then quickly bitten and wrapped in silk before being stored for later consumption. The initial bite serves to paralyze the prey and minimize the danger of the spider herself being stung or bitten, and the enzymes thus injected serve to begin liquefaction of the prey's internal structures.
Alongside the use of the web to capture other prey, the spiders are also cannibals and prey on each other. However, this only happens before, during or after sexual activity. They attack based on their size, sexual experience and hunger levels.
A. diadematus is a reclusive creature and only bites humans if cornered or otherwise provoked. It responds to a disturbance by vibrating rapidly in its web until it becomes a blur, a reaction that is assumed to confuse potential predators.


The spider species Araneus diadematus is commonly called the European garden spider, diadem spider, orangie, cross spider and crowned orb weaver. It is sometimes called the pumpkin spider, although this name is also used for a different species, Araneus marmoreus. It is an orb-weaver spider found in Europe, where it is native, and North America, where it is introduced.


Individual spiders' colourings can range from extremely light yellow to very dark grey, but all A. diadematus have mottled white markings across the dorsal abdomen, with four or more segments forming a cross. The markings are formed in cells filled with guanine, which is a byproduct of protein metabolism.
Adult females range in length from 6.5 to 20 mm (0.26 to 0.79 in), while males range from 5.5 to 13 mm (0.22 to 0.51 in). Occasionally, the female will eat the male directly after mating. (See video below.)


Trichonephila clavata pass winter as eggs and scatter as tiny juveniles in the spring. The adult female's body size is 17–25 mm, while the male's is  7–10 mm.
The web of females may reach several meters in length. In sunlight, the yellow threads appear to be a rich gold color. The structure of the web seen in cross-section is unusual for an orb web; it has three layers: the central orb, plus two irregular layers in front and behind the orb.
The adult female individual has stripes of yellow and dark blue, with red toward the rear of the abdomen. In autumn, smaller males may be seen in the webs of the females for copulating. After mating, the female spins an egg sack on a tree, laying 400 to 1500 eggs in one sack. Her lifecycle ends by late autumn or early winter with the death of the spider. The next generation emerges in spring.
Although the spider is not aggressive, they will bite to protect themselves. The bite is considered quite painful, but not life-threatening.


Trichonephila clavata, also known as the Jorō spider (ジョロウグモ（女郎蜘蛛、上臈蜘蛛, Jorō-gumo), is a member of the Trichonephila genus. The spider can be found throughout Japan (except Hokkaidō), Korea, Taiwan, China, and since 2013, much of northern Georgia and western South Carolina in the United States. Due to its large size and the bright, unique colors of the female Trichonephila, the spider is well-favored in Japan.
In 2014, scientists confirmed the first known occurrence of T. clavata in North America.
In 2019, this species was moved from the genus Nephila to Trichonephila. T. clavata's congener Trichonephila plumipes is commonly found in Australia. It also was moved from Nephila to Trichonephila, along with 10 other species.


The spider is an introduced species in northeast Georgia and western South Carolina in North America. They were first spotted in Hoschton, Georgia in 2013. Since then, they have been spotted in numerous locations in northeast Georgia and also in Greenville, South Carolina. It is believed that the species will become naturalized. They are expected to colonize much of the Eastern Seaboard of the United States due to their relative imperviousness to the cold.
As of 2021, their impact on their new ecosystem is unknown. They have been observed catching the brown marmorated stink bug (Halymorpha halys), another invasive species that native spiders have not been known to eat, and it has also been hoped that they may consume mosquitoes and flies. Some hope that the impact of the species will be positive due to their harmless nature and consumption of primarily invasive or nuisance insects; however, because of the relative lack of information about its ecology, the effects the spider will have on ecosystems are unknown.


Perna canaliculus occurs around all of New Zealand's mainland. It is usually found below the intertidal zone, but it can occur in the intertidal zone. P. canaliculus feeds on various types of phytoplankton.


New Zealand greenshell mussel are often parasitized by pea crabs. In 2015, New Zealand researchers Oliver Trottier and Andrew Jeffs from University of Auckland studied  the mate location behaviour of male New Zealand pea crabs, which were observed when dwelling in the mussel. Given the cryptic behaviour of the male crabs, a trapping system was developed to determine whether male crabs would exit their mussel hosts in response to an upstream female crab. Observations of the nocturnal mate-finding behaviour of male crabs were made in darkness using infrared video recordings. Male crabs were often observed stroking the mantle edge of the mussel whilst attempting to gain entry, successfully increasing mussel valve gape during entry from 3.7 to 5.5 millimetres (9⁄64 to 7⁄32 in).


This shellfish is economically important to New Zealand.  It differs from other mussel species in that it has dark brown/green shells with green lips around the edges, and has only one adductor muscle. It is also one of the largest mussel species, reaching 240 millimetres (9 in) in length.


Perna canaliculus inhibits the 5-lipoxygenase pathway, which leads to the formation of leukotrienes. Many of the products of these pathways have inflammation-supporting properties. However, a 2006 systematic review of scientific research on supplementation with green-lipped mussel found "little consistent and compelling evidence" of any benefit for rheumatoid or osteoarthritis.


These spiders build a silken retreat at night, which is about twice the length of the animal. Although the same retreat is sometimes reused, others are built in the vicinity.
Males have been seen to feed on immature females, although this may be by accident.


H. adansoni is found in warmer climates around the world, for example Malta, India, Japan, Brazil, Taiwan and Australia. It has also been introduced worldwide in greenhouses and similar places, for example in several German zoos. In China it is distributed in the provinces of Gansu, Guangxi, Guangdong and Yunnan.


This marine species occurs from Northern Oregon, USA to Baja California Sur, Mexico. Also reported from Japan.


This species is native to the Mediterranean excluding south-east Mediterranean.
It is introduced in Israel and in Egypt since Roman times. It has been introduced into North America, including Phoenix and Glendale, Arizona, and other areas Fresno, California as a biological control agent, in hopes of controlling populations of the brown garden snail.
It is found in Great Britain, as a "hothouse alien"


Sexual maturity occurs at approximately 10 months. An adult is capable of laying 500 eggs in its   lifetime. The eggs are deposited singly in the soil and hatch within 10-45 days.
Rumina decollata is a voracious predator, and will readily feed upon common garden snails and slugs and their eggs. The snail eats plant matter as well, but this generalist predator is indiscriminate in its feeding and has been implicated in the decimation of native gastropods (including non-pest species) and beneficial annelids.
Decollate snails are tolerant of dry and cold conditions, during which they burrow deep into the soil. They are most active during the night and during rainfall.


The shell of the decollate snail is long and roughly cone-shaped. It grows to approximately 40mm-45mm in length and a width of 14 mm, and upon reaching mature size, grinds or chips off the end of its own shell by moving its body roughly against hard surfaces, so that the shell takes on a decollate shape, tapering to a blunt end.


The American lobster was first described by Thomas Say in 1817, with a type locality of "Long-branch, part of the coast of New Jersey". The name Say chose – "Astacus marinus" – was invalid as a junior homonym of Astacus marinus Fabricius, 1775, which is in turn a junior synonym of Homarus gammarus. The American lobster was given its current scientific name of Homarus americanus by Henri Milne-Edwards in his 1837 work Histoire naturelle des Crustacés ("Natural History of the Crustacea"). The common name preferred by the Food and Agriculture Organization is "American lobster", but the species is also known locally as the "northern lobster", "Maine lobster" or simply "lobster".


Homarus americanus is distributed along the Atlantic coast of North America, from Labrador in the north to Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, in the south. South of New Jersey, the species is uncommon, and landings in Delaware, Maryland, Virginia and North Carolina usually make up less than 0.1% of all landings. A fossil claw assigned to Homarus americanus was found at Nantucket, dating from the Pleistocene.  In 2013, an American lobster was caught at the Farallon Islands off the coast of California. It has been introduced to Norway and potentially Iceland.


The natural diet of H. americanus is relatively consistent across different habitats. It is dominated by mollusks (especially mussels), echinoderms and polychaetes, although a wide range of other prey items may be eaten, including other crustaceans, brittle stars and cnidarians. Lobsters in Maine have been shown to gain 35–55% of their calories from herring, which is used as bait for lobster traps. Only 6% of lobsters entering lobster traps to feed are caught.


American lobsters are a popular food. They are commonly boiled or steamed. Hard-shells (lobsters that are several months past their last molt) can survive out of water for up to four or five days if kept refrigerated. Soft-shells (lobsters that have only recently molted) do not survive more than a few hours out of water. Lobsters are usually cooked alive, which may be illegal in certain areas and which some people consider inhumane.
One common way of serving lobster 'tail' (actually the abdomen) is with beef, known as surf and turf. Lobsters have a greenish or brownish organ called the tomalley, which, like the liver and pancreas in a human, filters out toxins from the body. Some diners consider it a delicacy, but others avoid it because they consider it a toxin source; dislike eating innards; or are put off by its texture and appearance, that of a grainy greenish paste.
A set of nutcrackers and a long, thin tool for pulling meat from inaccessible areas are suggested as basics, although more experienced diners can eat the animal with their bare hands or a simple tool (a fork, knife or rock). Eating a lobster can get messy, and most restaurants offer a lobster bib. Meat is generally contained in the larger claws and tails, and stays warm quite a while after being served. There is some meat in the legs and in the arms that connect the large claws to the body. There is also some small amount of meat just below the carapace around the thorax and in the smaller legs.


Homarus americanus commonly reaches 200–610 millimetres (8–24 in) long and weighs 0.45–4.08 kilograms (1–9 lb) in weight, but has been known to weigh as much as 20 kg (44 lb), making this the heaviest crustacean in the world. Together with Sagmariasus verreauxi, it is also the longest decapod crustacean in the world; an average adult is about 230 mm (9 in) long and weighs 680 to 910 g (1.5 to 2 lb). The longest American lobsters have a body (excluding claws) 64 cm (25 in) long. According to Guinness World Records, the heaviest crustacean ever recorded was an American lobster caught off Nova Scotia, Canada, weighing 20.1 kg (44.4 lb).
The closest relative of H. americanus is the European lobster, Homarus gammarus. The two species are very similar, and can be crossed artificially, although hybrids are unlikely to occur in the wild since their ranges do not overlap. The two species can be distinguished by several characteristics:
The rostrum of H. americanus bears one or more spines on the underside, which are lacking in H. gammarus.
The spines on the claws of H. americanus are red or red-tipped, while those of H. gammarus are white or white-tipped.
The underside of the claw of H. americanus is orange or red, while that of H. gammarus is creamy white or very pale red.


Trite auricoma is widely distributed throughout New Zealand. T. auricoma can often be found in rolled up leaves of flax (Phormium) or underneath dropped cabbage tree (Cordyline) leaves. T. auricoma can also be found underneath stones, in vegetation and also on the ground.


Adults are 8.4mm to 8.8mm in length. The cephalothorax is coloured dark brown and is shaped rectangular and flattened. The abdomen tends to be patterned with grey-brown and orange colours. When fully mature, males have a yellow clypeal band that resembles a mustache. Females do not have this feature. Males also have a slimmer body and longer frontal legs.


Like all spiders, Trite auricoma is an obligate carnivore. In experimental conditions, juvenile T. auricoma has been observed feeding on aphids and small flies such as Drosophila. In experimental conditions, T. auricoma were more selective about prey choice, and fed on small flies and tachnids. T. auricoma also have to learn what is good to eat. It has been reported that juveniles will only eat slaters once, but then never again.


Araneus quadratus, the four-spot orb-weaver, is a common orb-weaver spider found in Europe and Central Asia, and as far as the Kamchatka Peninsula and Japan. Females can reach 17 mm in length, especially when gravid, males approximately half that. They are quite variable in appearance, ranging from brown to bright orange or green, but they always have the characteristic four white spots on the abdomen. The darker color morphs are easier to identify, due to the contrast between the white spots and the rest of the body. The legs are sometimes brightly striped.
The spider lives in gardens, wooded areas, or wherever there is vegetation to string an orb web across. This species builds its web close to the ground to catch jumping insects such as small grasshoppers. The female builds the more elaborate web, complete with a funnel-shaped retreat off to the side where she goes during inclement weather. The web is smaller and closer to the ground than those of other species of orb-weaver.
Adult females can actively change their color. It takes about three days to take on colors that accurately match their resting surface.


This nudibranch species was described from the intertidal region at Duxbury Reef, Marin County, California. It is known from Cape Arago, Oregon, to San Diego, California, USA on the Pacific Coast of North America.


Aeolidia loui feeds almost entirely on various species of anemones. However, due to limited mobility of nudibranchs and often highly concentrated distribution of prey, individual nudibranchs may concentrate on an individual species of prey during their lifetime.
These nudibranchs feed mostly feed on the tentacles of the sea anemone.


Horseshoe crabs resemble crustaceans but belong to a separate subphylum of the arthropods, Chelicerata. Horseshoe crabs are closely related to the extinct eurypterids (sea scorpions), which include some of the largest arthropods to have ever existed, and the two may be sister groups. Other studies have placed eurypterids closer to the arachnids in a group called Merostomata. The enigmatic Chasmataspidids are also thought to be closely related to the horseshoe crabs. The earliest horseshoe crab fossils are found in strata from the Lower Ordovician period, roughly 480 million years ago.
The Limulidae are the only recent family of the order Xiphosura, and contains all four living species of horseshoe crabs:
Carcinoscorpius rotundicauda, the mangrove horseshoe crab, found in South and Southeast Asia
Limulus polyphemus, the Atlantic or American horseshoe crab, found along the Atlantic coast of the United States and the Southeast Gulf of Mexico
Tachypleus gigas, the Indo-Pacific, Indonesian, Indian or southern horseshoe crab, found in South and Southeast Asia
Tachypleus tridentatus, the Chinese, Japanese or tri-spine horseshoe crab, found in Southeast and East Asia


The entire body of the horseshoe crab is protected by a hard carapace. It has two compound lateral eyes, each composed of about 1,000 ommatidia, plus a pair of median eyes that are able to detect both visible light and ultraviolet light, a single parietal eye, and a pair of rudimentary lateral eyes on the top. The latter become functional just before the embryo hatches. Also, a pair of ventral eyes is located near the mouth, as well as a cluster of photoreceptors on the telson. Having relatively poor eyesight, the animals have the largest rods and cones of any known animal, about 100 times the size of humans, and their eyes are a million times more sensitive to light at night than during the day. They use their chelicerae—a pair of small appendages—for moving food into the mouth. The next five pairs of appendages, the first of which are the pedipalps, are used for locomotion (ambulatory legs). The mouth is located in the center of the legs, whose bases are referred to as gnathobases, and have the same function as jaws and help grind up food. In extant species their appendages are uniramous, but the fossil genus Dibasterium had four pairs of branched walking legs. The pedipalps on a male change shape on their terminal molt, becoming boxing glove-like claspers that are used for grasping the female during mating. The last pair of legs for both male and female are the main legs used for pushing when walking on the ocean floor. The remaining leg pairs have a weak claw at the tip. Lost legs or the telson (tail) may slowly regenerate, and cracks in the body shell can heal.
Behind its legs, the horseshoe crab has book gills, which exchange respiratory gases, and are also occasionally used for swimming.
As in other arthropods, a true endoskeleton is absent, but the body does have an endoskeletal structure made up of cartilaginous plates that support the book gills.
Horseshoe crabs are more often found on the ocean floor searching for worms and molluscs, which are their main food. They may also feed on crustaceans and even small fish.
Females are about 20–30% larger than males. The smallest species is C. rotundicauda and the largest is T. tridentatus. On average, males of C. rotundicauda are about 30 centimetres (12 inches) long, including a tail (telson) that is about 15 cm (6 in), and their carapace (prosoma) is about 15 cm (6 in) wide. Some southern populations (in the Yucatán Peninsula) of L. polyphemus are somewhat smaller, but otherwise this species is larger. In the largest species, T. tridentatus, females can reach as much as 79.5 cm (31+1⁄4 in) long, including their tail, and up to 4 kg (9 lb) in weight. This is only about 10–20 cm (4–8 in) longer than the largest females of L. polyphemus and T. gigas, but roughly twice the weight. The juveniles grow about 33% larger with every molt until reaching adult size. Atlantic horseshoe crabs molt in late July.
Horseshoe crabs normally swim upside down, inclined at about 30° to the horizontal and moving at about 10-15 cm/s.
Horseshoe crabs have two primary compound eyes and seven secondary simple eyes. Two of the secondary eyes are on the underside.
Painting by Heinrich Harder, c. 1916


Horseshoe crabs are marine and brackish water arthropods of the family Limulidae and the only living members of the order Xiphosura. Despite their name, they are not true crabs or crustaceans; they are chelicerates, most closely related to arachnids, such as spiders and scorpions.
Horseshoe crabs live primarily in and around shallow coastal waters on soft, sandy or muddy bottoms. They tend to spawn in the intertidal zone at spring high tides. They are eaten in some parts of Asia, and used as fishing bait, in fertilizer and in science (especially Limulus amebocyte lysate). In recent years, population declines have occurred as a consequence of coastal habitat destruction and overharvesting. Tetrodotoxin may be present in one horseshoe crab species, Carcinoscorpius rotundicauda.
Fossil records for horseshoe crabs extend back as far as 480 million years ago, with extant forms being living fossils. A 2019 molecular analysis places them as the sister group of Ricinulei within Arachnida.


The bluespotted ribbontail ray was originally described as Raja lymma by Swedish naturalist Peter Forsskål, in his 1775 Descriptiones Animalium quae in itinere ad maris australis terras per annos 1772, 1773, et 1774 suscepto collegit, observavit, et delineavit Joannes Reinlioldus Forster, etc., curante Henrico Lichtenstein. The specific epithet lymma means "dirt". Forsskål did not designate a type specimen. In 1837, German biologists Johannes Peter Müller and Friedrich Gustav Jakob Henle created the genus Taeniura for Trygon ornatus, now known to be a junior synonym of this species.
Other common names used for this species include bluespotted ray, bluespotted fantail ray, bluespotted lagoon ray, bluespotted stingray, fantail ray, lesser fantail ray, lagoon ray, reef ray, ribbon-tailed stingray, and ribbontail stingray. Morphological examination has suggested that the bluespotted ribbontail ray is more closely related to the amphi-American Himantura (H. pacifica and H. schmardae) and the river stingrays (Potamotrygonidae) than to the congeneric blotched fantail ray (T. meyeni), which is closer to Dasyatis and Indo-Pacific Himantura.


Widespread in the nearshore waters of the tropical Indo-Pacific region, the bluespotted ribbontail ray has a range that extends around the periphery of the Indian Ocean from South Africa to the Arabian Peninsula to Southeast Asia, including Madagascar, Mauritius, Zanzibar, the Seychelles, Sri Lanka, and the Maldives. It is rare in the Persian Gulf and Gulf of Oman. In the Pacific Ocean, this species is found from the Philippines to northern Australia, as well as around numerous Melanesian and Polynesian islands as far east as the Solomon Islands. Rarely found deeper than 30 m (100 ft), the bluespotted ribbontail ray is a bottom-dwelling species that frequents coral reefs and adjacent sandy flats. It is also commonly encountered in the intertidal zone and tidal pools, and has been sighted near seagrass beds. Every summer, considerable numbers of bluespotted ribbontail rays arrive off South Africa.


One of the most abundant stingrays inhabiting Indo-Pacific reefs, the bluespotted ribbontail ray generally spends the day hidden alone inside caves or under coral ledges or other debris (including from shipwrecks), often with only its tail showing. At night, small groups assemble and swim onto shallow sandy flats with the rising tide to feed. Unlike many other stingrays, this species seldom buries itself in sand. The bluespotted ribbontail ray excavates sand pits in search of molluscs, polychaete worms, shrimps, crabs, and small benthic bony fishes; when prey is located, it is trapped by the body of the ray and maneuvered into the mouth with the disc. Other fishes, such as goatfish, frequently follow foraging rays, seeking food missed by the ray.
Breeding in the bluespotted ribbontail ray occurs from late spring to summer; the male follows the female and nips at her disc, eventually biting and holding onto her for copulation. There is also a documented instance of a male holding onto the disc of a smaller male bluespotted stingray (Dasyatis kuhlii), in a possible case of mistaken identity. Adult males have been observed gathering in shallow water, which may relate to reproduction. Like other stingrays, this species is aplacental viviparous: the embryos are initially sustained by yolk, which later in development is supplemented by histotroph ("uterine milk", containing mucus, fat, and proteins) produced by the mother. The gestation period is uncertain, but is thought to be between four and twelve months long. Females bear litters of up to seven young, each a miniature version of the adult measuring around 13–14 cm (5.1–5.5 in) across. Males attain sexual maturity at a disc width of 20–21 cm (7.9–8.3 in); the maturation size of females is unknown.
Known predators of the bluespotted ribbontail ray include hammerhead sharks (Sphyrna) and bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops); it is also potentially preyed upon by other large fishes and marine mammals. When threatened, this ray tends to flee at high speed in a zigzag pattern, to throw off pursuers. Numerous parasites have been identified from this species: the tapeworms Aberrapex manjajiae, Anthobothrium taeniuri, Cephalobothrium taeniurai, Echinobothrium elegans and E. helmymohamedi, Kotorelliella jonesi, Polypocephalus saoudi, and Rhinebothrium ghardaguensis and R. taeniuri, the monogeneans Decacotyle lymmae, Empruthotrema quindecima, Entobdella australis, and Pseudohexabothrium taeniurae, the flatworms Pedunculacetabulum ghardaguensis and Anaporrhutum albidum, the nematode Mawsonascaris australis, the copepod Sheina orri, and the protozoan Trypanosoma taeniurae. This ray has been observed soliciting cleanings from the bluestreak cleaner wrasse (Labroides dimidiatus) by raising the margins of its disc and pelvic fins.


While timid and innocuous towards humans, the bluespotted ribbontail ray is capable of inflicting an excruciating wound with its venomous tail spines. Its attractive appearance and relatively small size has resulted in its being the most common stingray found in the home aquarium trade. It seldom fares well in captivity and few hobbyists are able to maintain one for long. Many specimens refuse to feed in the aquarium, and seemingly healthy individuals often inexplicably die or stop feeding. A higher degree of success has been achieved by public aquariums and a breeding project is maintained by the European Association of Zoos and Aquaria (for example, a total of 15 pups were born at Lisbon Oceanarium from 2011 to 2013). The bluespotted ribbontail ray is utilized as food in East Africa, Southeast Asia, and Australia; it is captured intentionally or incidentally using gillnets, longlines, spears, and fence traps.
The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) has assessed the bluespotted ribbontail ray as Least Concern. Although relatively common and widely distributed, this species faces continuing degradation of its coral reef habitat throughout its range, from development and destructive fishing practices using cyanide or dynamite. Its populations are under heavy pressure by artisanal and commercial fisheries, and by local collecting for the aquarium trade.


The pectoral fin disc of the bluespotted ribbontail ray is oval in shape, around four-fifths as wide as long, with a rounded to broadly angular snout. The large, protruding eyes are immediately followed by the broad spiracles. There is a narrow flap of skin between the nares with a fringed posterior margin, reaching past the mouth. The lower jaw dips at the middle and deep furrows are present at the mouth corners. There are 15–24 tooth rows in either jaw, arranged into pavement-like plates, and two large papillae on the floor of the mouth. The pelvic fins are narrow and angular. The thick, depressed tail measures about 1.5 times the disc length and bears one or two (usually two) serrated spines well behind the tail base; there is a deep fin fold on the ventral surface, reaching the tip of the tail, and a low midline ridge on the upper surface.
The skin is generally smooth, save for perhaps a scattering of small thorns on the middle of the back. The dorsal coloration is striking, consisting of numerous circular, neon blue spots on a yellowish brown or green background; the spots vary in size, becoming smaller and denser towards the disc margin. The tail has two stripes of the same blue running along each side as far as the spines. The eyes are bright yellow and the belly is white. Individuals found off southern Africa may lack the blue tail stripes. The bluespotted ribbontail ray grows to 35 cm (14 in) across, 80 cm (31 in) long, and 5 kg (11 lb).


This species is native to Europe. It occurs, mostly on the coast, from north Portugal to the northwestern Mediterranean area. It has been widely introduced in other countries in the same general area, including England and Wales.
This is also an introduced species in Australia, and South Africa.


This species is widely distributed throughout the Indo-West Pacific Oceans including the central Pacific and the Red Sea.


This is a large species growing to at least 115 mm. It can be distinguished by its numerous (3 to 6), longitudinal, tuberculate notal ridges. The ridge and bases of the tubercles are a blue-grey colour. The tubercles are capped in yellow. The foot sole has a black longitudinal foot stripe. The rhinophoral clavus possesses 27 to 30 lamellae.


The greenhouse millipede (Oxidus gracilis), also known as the hothouse millipede, short-flange millipede, or garden millipede, is a species of millipede in the family Paradoxosomatidae that has been widely introduced around the world, and is sometimes a pest in greenhouses.


Greenhouse millipedes are thought to be native to Japan, but have been introduced globally. They are found in the tropics as well as temperate North and South America, and all of Europe.


Greenhouse millipedes achieve lengths of 18 to 23 mm (0.71 to 0.91 in) as adults, and widths from 2 to 2.5 mm (0.079 to 0.098 in). The dorsal section of each segment has a transverse groove, a trait found in most paradoxosomatids.  They are brown in color with pale cream-colored legs and paranota (lateral "keels" extending from each segment).


Hogna radiata is a species of wolf spider present in South Europe (from the middle of France), north Africa and Central Asia (N. I. Platnick). This species is wandering, hunting smaller insects less than 20% of its own size. Found on grass, parks, and forests.


The nurse shark (Ginglymostoma cirratum) is an elasmobranch fish in the family Ginglymostomatidae. The conservation status of the nurse shark is globally assessed as Vulnerable in the IUCN List of Threatened Species. They are considered to be a species of least concern in the United States and in The Bahamas, but considered to be near threatened in the western Atlantic Ocean because of their vulnerable status in South America and reported threats throughout many areas of Central America and the Caribbean. They are directly targeted in some fisheries and considered by-catch in others.
Nurse sharks are an important species for shark research (predominantly in physiology). They are robust and able to tolerate capture, handling, and tagging extremely well. As inoffensive as nurse sharks may appear, they are ranked fourth in documented shark bites on humans, likely due to incautious behavior by divers on account of the nurse shark's slow, sedentary nature.


The nurse shark has a wide but patchy geographical distribution along tropical and subtropical coastal waters of the Eastern Atlantic, Western Atlantic, and Eastern Pacific. In the Eastern Atlantic it ranges from Cape Verde to Gabon (accidental north to France). In the Western Atlantic, including the Caribbean, it ranges from Rhode Island to southern Brazil, and in the East Pacific from Baja California to Peru.
Nurse sharks are a typically inshore bottom-dwelling species. Juveniles are mostly found on the bottom of shallow coral reefs, seagrass flats, and around mangrove islands, whereas older individuals typically reside in and around deeper reefs and rocky areas, where they tend to seek shelter in crevices and under ledges during the day and leave their shelter at night to feed on the seabed in shallower areas.


Nurse sharks are opportunistic predators that feed primarily on small fish (e.g. stingrays) and some invertebrates (e.g. crustaceans, molluscs, tunicates). They are typically solitary nocturnal animals, rifling through bottom sediments in search of food at night, but are often gregarious during the day forming large sedentary groups. Nurse sharks are obligate suction feeders capable of generating suction forces that are among the highest recorded for any aquatic vertebrate to date. Although their small mouths may limit the size of prey, they can exhibit a suck-and-spit behavior and/or shake their head violently to reduce the size of food items.
Nurse sharks are exceptionally sedentary unlike most other shark species. Nurse sharks show strong site fidelity (typical of reef sharks), and it is one of the few shark species known to exhibit mating site fidelity, as they will return to the same breeding grounds time and time again.
American alligators (Alligator mississippiensis) and American crocodiles may occasionally prey on nurse sharks in some coastal habitats. Photographic evidence and historical accounts suggest that encounters between species are commonplace in their shared habitats.


The nurse shark has two rounded dorsal fins, rounded pectoral fins, an elongated caudal fin, and a broad head. Maximum adult length is currently documented as 3.08 m (10 ft 1+1⁄2 in), whereas past reports of 4.5 m (15 ft) and corresponding weights of up to 330 kg (730 lb) are likely to have been exaggerated. Adult nurse sharks are brownish in color. Newly born nurse sharks have a spotted coloration which fades with age and are about 30 cm in length when nascent.


The brown bullhead thrives in a variety of habitats, including lakes, ponds, and slow-moving streams with low oxygen or muddy conditions. In many areas of the United States, brown bullheads are opportunistic bottom feeders. The species has few natural predators and is not popular with fishermen, so it has thrived. Catfish are found in a variety of habitats, from lakes or murky ponds to drainage ditches. They are scarce during the day, but come out at night to feed, searching the bottom of a lake or river for food. They eat insects, leeches, snails, fish, clams, and many plants. They are also known to eat corn, which can be used as bait. Similarly to other catfish, they spawn only after the temperature of the water has reached 80 °F (27 °C) in June and July. However, cooler temperatures are required before brown bullheads will spawn in the northern US.
 Brown bullheads can withstand a wide range of water temperatures and low oxygen levels. Brown bullheads can survive waters with heavy pollution and dissolved oxygen values as low as 0.2 ppm. Because of bullheads' tolerance of low oxygen levels, they are less threatened by winterkill and are capable of surviving in relatively extreme environments.


The native range of the brown bullhead is in the Atlantic and Gulf Slope drainages. More specifically, it is found from Nova Scotia and New Brunswick to Mobile Bay, Alabama, and in the Great Lakes, Hudson Bay, and Mississippi River basins (from Quebec to Saskatchewan, south to Louisiana, and west to Texas). However, there is evidence that the brown bullhead was historically absent from the Gulf Coast west of the Apalachicola River and east of the Mississippi River. The species is also abundant in many regions as a result of stocking for food or sport. These locations include Georgia,Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Virginia, and Washington. Brown bullheads are a social non-migratory species that lives the majority of their lives in schools.


Brown bullheads are omnivorous benthic bottom feeders. Their diet consists of algae, leeches, worms, mollusks, crustaceans, insects, crayfish, other smaller fish species and fish eggs. Brown bullheads are typically nocturnal feeders, but have been reported to feed diurnally. Bullheads have poor eyesight and are heavily reliant on their sensitive barbels to locate their food. The fish are omnivorous and will reportedly eat almost anything that fits in their mouth.


Brown bullheads are the most susceptible to predators in their developmental stages, primarily as eggs. They are prey to the following species: northern pike, muskellunge, walleye, snapping turtles, water snakes, green herons, yellow perch, and sunfish. Additionally, brown bullheads are used for small-scale commercial fishing, recreational fishing, and more specifically for consumption and research. Predation by other fish and coexisting species is only a realistic threat to bullheads under four inches, while the biggest threat to adult bullheads is humans. Brown bullheads have protective coloration to avoid predation. As a mode of physical defense against predators, bullhead species have a sharp spine on the leading edge of their dorsal and pectoral fins. To use this adaptation as a defense mechanism, bullheads will stiffen the spine while being attacked, impeding the predator's ability to swallow while simultaneously releasing a venom to sting and burn the predator.


This catfish is easily caught with natural bait such as worms and chicken livers. They have a scrappy but not unusually strong fight. Anglers often catch them by fishing off the bottom. When caught in very clear water when the flesh is firm and reddish to pinkish, the hornpout is quite edible and delicious. Nevertheless, its genial cousins such as the channel catfish and the blue catfish are better known for their use as food. In most areas, they will not exceed two pounds in weight, with a current International Game Fish Association world record of 7.375 pounds (3.345 kg).


The brown bullhead grows to be approximately 21 inches (53 cm) in length and is a darker brown-green dorsally, growing lighter green and yellow towards the ventral surface. The belly is off-white or cream, and the fish has no scales. Additionally, there are darker, brown-black speckles along the entire surface of the fish. The brown bullhead has two dorsal fins, a single adipose fin, abdominal pelvic fins, and an anal fin with 21 to 24 rays. The tail is only slightly notched, with the dorsal and ventral lobes angling inward. The fish has barbels around the mouth and on the pelvic spine. The barbels around the mouth are black to yellowish brown on the chin and saw-like on the pelvic spines. Juvenile brown bullheads are similar in appearance, but are more likely to be of a single solid color.
The brown bullhead's mouth is slightly subterminal, with the upper jaw extending slightly past the lower jaw. This position enables bottom feeding. The brown bullhead may be distinguished from similar species by the absence of a tooth patch on its upper jaw with the lateral backwards extensions. Adult brown bullheads range in size from 200 to 500 mm (7.9 to 19.7 in) and weigh between 0.5 kg (1.1 lb) and 3.6 kg (7.9 lb) (in extreme cases). Brown bullheads are ectothermic, heterothermic, and bilaterally symmetrical. Brown bullheads can be distinguished from black and yellow bullheads by their yellow-black chin barbels, the missing bar at the base of the tail (which is present in black bullheads), and their 21–24 anal fin rays.


This marine species occurs in the Gulf of Mexico, the Caribbean Sea, and the North Atlantic Ocean.


The size of the shell varies between 20 to 45 cm (7.9 to 17.7 in).
This species normally has a sinistral (left-handed) shell, thus the scientific name. (When the shell is held with the spiral end up, the opening is on the left side.) The spire is low and the siphonal canal is long. There is a distinct shoulder where the spire meets the body whorl; knobs of small to moderate size are found at the shoulder. The base color of the shell is variable but is usually pale, and the shell is marked with dark stripes that run down its long axis.


The Atlantic tarpon (Megalops atlanticus) is a ray-finned fish that inhabits coastal waters, estuaries, lagoons, and rivers. It is also known as the silver king. It is found in the Atlantic Ocean, typically in tropical and subtropical regions, though it has been reported as far north as Nova Scotia and the Atlantic coast of southern France, and as far south as Argentina. As with all elopiformes, it spawns at sea. Its diet includes small fish and crustaceans.
The tarpon has a reputation for great aerobatics, attaining astonishing size, and having impressive armored scales. It is generally considered to be of poor food quality, but it is highly valued as a game fish by recreational fishermen.


The scales of Atlantic tarpon have been used as nail files and for decorative purposes since pre-history. Their crushed up scales also feature in traditional medicine, particularly in Brazil.
An Atlantic tarpon is depicted in the fresco on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel completed by Michelangelo around 1510.
The Atlantic tarpon was first described scientifically by zoologist Achille Valenciennes in 1847 as Megalops atlanticus, Megalops being inspired by their large eyes.
The tarpon is the official state saltwater fish of the American state of Alabama.
Atlantic tarpon adapt well to urban and suburban environments due to their tolerance for boat traffic and low water quality. Around humans Atlantic tarpon are primarily nocturnal.
While the Atlantic tarpon is rarely consumed in the United States, subsistence and commercial fisheries exist in a number of countries. Both their meat and roe are consumed.


Atlantic tarpon evolved approximately 18 million years ago and are one of the oldest living fish.
It has been recorded at up to 2.5 m (8 ft 2 in) in length and weighing up to 161 kg (355 lb). Males rarely weigh more than 100 pounds.
A tarpon is capable of filling its swim bladder with air, like a primitive lung. This gives it a predatory advantage when oxygen levels in the water are low. In appearance, it is greenish or bluish on top and silver on the sides. The large mouth is turned upwards and the lower jaw contains an elongated, bony plate.  The last ray of the dorsal fin is much longer than the others, reaching nearly to the tail.


The black crappie's habitats are lakes, reservoirs, borrow pits, and navigation pools in large rivers. They prefer areas with little or no current, clear water, and abundant cover such as submerged timber or aquatic vegetation, as well as sand or mud bottoms like those found in lakes, ponds, streams, and sloughs.
Like P. annularis, P. nigromaculatus is very prolific and can tend to overpopulate its environment, with negative consequences both for the crappie and for other fish species. A commercial supplier of the fish, however, claims that it can be safely stocked in ponds as small as one acre (0.40 hectares) in area.


The black crappie (Pomoxis nigromaculatus) is a freshwater fish found in North America, one of the two types of crappies. It is very similar to the white crappie in size, shape, and habits, except that it is darker, with a pattern of black spots.


Crappies feed early in the morning and from about midnight until approximately 2 am. Individuals smaller than about 16 cm in length eat plankton and minuscule crustaceans, while larger individuals feed on small fish (like shad), as well as minnows. Adult black crappies feed on fewer fish than white crappies do; instead they consume a larger volume of insects, insect larvae and crustaceans. According to scientific studies carried out in California, mysid shrimp, Neomysis awatschensis, as well as amphipods, and Corophium, were the most commonly eaten by all sizes of black crappie. Although this diet is popular among black crappies in general, their diet may significantly change based on habitat, availability of food, and other biotic factors such as amount of resource competition. The same study also showed that young, small crappie tend to feed on small aquatic invertebrate animals and changed to a fish-filled diet as they matured to adulthood. Its diet, as an adult, tends to be less dominated by other fish than that of the white crappie.


Black crappies are most accurately identified by the seven or eight spines on its dorsal fin (white crappies have five or six dorsal spines). Crappies have a deep and laterally compressed body. They are usually silvery-gray to green in color and show irregular or mottled black splotches over the entire body. Black crappies have rows of dark spots on their dorsal, anal, and caudal fins. The dorsal and anal fins resemble each other in shape. Both crappies have large mouths extending to below the eye, and thin lips—both suggestive of their piscivorous feeding habits. Crappies are typically about 4–8 inches (10–20 cm) long. The current all-tackle fishing world record for a black crappie is 2.47 kg (5 lb 7 oz). The maximum length reported for a black crappie is 19.3 inches (49 cm) and the maximum published weight is just under 6 pounds (2,700 g).


The tidepool sculpin is found in the northeastern Pacific Ocean from the Bering Sea to southern California. Its depth range is from the intertidal zone down to about 100 m (330 ft). It is tolerant of both brackish water and normal seawater. It is found higher up the shore and is more tolerant of warmer water than other species of sculpin such as the fluffy sculpin.


The tidepool sculpin (Oligocottus maculosus) is a fish species in the sculpin family Cottidae that ranges from the Bering Sea to southern California. Individuals reach up to 8 cm (3 in) in length and are common in tidepools.


The tidepool sculpin is a common small fish in pools in the intertidal zone of rocky coasts, flitting from one hiding place to another. It shows great homing ability, returning each time the tide recedes to the pool in which it has taken up residence. It has been shown to have the ability to return to its home pool from a distance of 102 m (335 ft) after having been displaced for six months. It is a predator, feeding on small invertebrates such as isopods, amphipods, gastropod molluscs, polychaete worms and barnacles, as well as insects that happen to fall into the water. Small amounts of algae also form part of the diet. Sculpins are preyed upon by diving birds and by predatory fishes when the tide is high. When the seas are rough it moves higher up the shore. It can leave the water and breathe air, exchanging both oxygen and carbon dioxide, while hiding in a damp spot, and it attempts to evade predators by flapping about or wriggling in an effort to reach a more favourable location.
The fish become mature when about 35 mm (1.4 in) in length. The male has modified anal fin rays, and either they are used as claspers with fertilisation being internal, or the male clasps the female and fertilises the eggs as they are being laid. Small clusters of eggs are laid in late winter, often in crevices or empty barnacle shells. The larvae are planktonic in the open sea; in embayments, they sometimes school near the seabed. After thirty to sixty days the larvae move back to rock pools and become juvenile fish. Their growth rate is affected if they are too crowded in a pool.


The tidepool sculpin grows to a length of about 8 cm (3 in) and has a large head, tapering body, and spiny fins. It has a single pre-opercular spine and tufts of cirri on the top of the head but not on the body below the dorsal fin as the fluffy sculpin (Oligocottus snyderi) does. It varies considerably in colour, is often marbled in grey, brown and white, but may be reddish or greenish and can change colour rapidly so as to camouflage itself.


White crappies can be found in large rivers, reservoirs, and lakes. White crappies are more tolerant of turbid (murky) waters than black crappies, and the white crappie usually outnumbers the black crappie in turbid waters. White crappies also generally outnumber black crappies in areas with little rooted aquatic vegetation.  White crappies are most commonly found in rivers and low-velocity areas such as pools and backwaters of rivers. They are most abundant in lakes and reservoirs larger than 5 acres. The white crappie can be found in the open water during the mornings and evenings, but during the day this species is found in shallower, quiet waters (6–12 feet (1.8–3.7 m) deep) surrounded by structure.


White crappies are native to the Great Lakes, Hudson Bay, and the Mississippi River basins expanding from New York and southern Ontario westward to South Dakota and southward to Texas. This species has a large geographic range in the United States and currently has a stable population. Currently, this species is listed as a least concern species for conservation efforts.


White crappies are neither cruise- nor ambush-feeding strategists. Instead, they swim intermittently and only search for prey when stationary. This strategy is considered saltatory, or pause-and-travel search. Using this strategy, juveniles can grow rapidly in the first few days of life. This strategy is energetically favored to reduce search time for the species. White crappies in the larval and juvenile stages of life eat zooplankton and continue to feed primarily on small invertebrates during their first year of life.
When white crappies reach a length of 12–15 centimetres (4.7–5.9 in), they are considered adult. The adults feeds mainly on small fish such as minnows and young American shad, and large invertebrates such as crayfish and hellgrammites. Their diet can vary depending on their location. They feed the most in June through October. In the spring, they feed moderately, with their activity slowing during the winter months. In Mississippi, they feed on mayflies such as Hexagenia atrocaudata and Pentagenia vittigera. In Illinois, and probably elsewhere, they feast on American gizzard shad. In Pennsylvania and Ohio, adults eat small common carp, yellow perch, bluegill, and other white crappies. The terminal mouth position, sometimes known as the normal position, allows for this species to feed on what is in front of it.


White crappies are morphologically similar to black crappie. They have 5–10 dark vertical bars along their bodies, rather than the randomly scattered spots like the black crappie. The white crappie has a silvery color with green or brown shades along its back, with dark lateral bars along its side, and a white belly. The dorsal fins of the white crappie starts farther back on the body than those of the black crappie. The anal fin is about the same size as the dorsal fin. The white crappie has six dorsal fin spines, whereas the black crappie has seven or eight dorsal fin spines. White crappies are also slightly more elongated than black crappies. The white crappie is a deep-bodied fish with a flattened body, or a depth that is one-third of the length of the fish.  White crappies have spinous rays and ctenoid fish scales found in advanced teleosts. The exposed part of the scale has tiny tooth-like projections (cteni). Both species of crappies have a terminal mouth position with many small, conical teeth in two rows along the mouth and are called cardiform because they resemble a tool used for wool carding. Crappies belong to the family Centrarchidae in the infraclass Teleostei, which is one of three infraclasses in the class Actinopterygii.
The white crappie rarely exceeds 2 pounds (0.91 kg), and typically lives 2–7 years. The species is generally about 9–10 inches (23–25 cm) in length as an adult. The current for all-tackle fishing world record for a white crappie is 2.35 kg (5.2 lb).


The Atlantic croaker is native to coastal waters in the western Atlantic Ocean. Its range extends from Massachusetts to Mexico and includes the northern half of the Caribbean Sea but possibly not the southern Gulf of Mexico or the Antilles. It is also thought to live on the coasts of southern Brazil and Argentina. It is usually found in bays and estuaries over sandy or muddy bottoms where it feeds on polychaete worms, crustaceans and small fish. The croaker visits the Chesapeake Bay from March through October and is found throughout the Bay as far north as the Susquehanna Flats.


The name croaker is descriptive of the noise the fish makes by vibrating strong muscles against its swim bladder, which acts as a resonating chamber much like a ball. The Atlantic croaker is the loudest of the drum family. It is also referred to as a hardhead, with smaller ones called pin heads. During spawning season (August to October), croakers turn a deep golden color, from this comes the name golden croaker. Beginning in August, tiny young enter the Chesapeake Bay and travel to low-salinity and freshwater creeks. They move to deeper parts of tidal rivers for the winter. Juveniles leave the bay with the adults the following autumn. When full-grown at 2 to 3 years old, croakers reach between 18 and 20 inches in length long and 4 to 5 pounds, but on average are 1/2-2 pounds. The fish's lifespan can reach up to 8 years. The Chesapeake Bay record Atlantic croaker, caught in August 2007 off New Point Comfort Lighthouse in Virginia, weighed 8 pounds, 11 ounces and measured 27 inches long. They have traditionally been used for food by Native Americans, and their remains are found in shell middens. These fish are popular catches among recreational anglers.


The ribbed mussel occurs in the coastal waters of salt marsh habitats from the southern Gulf of St. Lawrence in eastern Canada, south along the western Atlantic coast to Florida. In the Gulf of Mexico this species is replaced by the southern ribbed mussel, Geukensia granosissima, and the two species hybridize in southern Florida.
The ribbed mussel has been introduced to Texas, Mexico, California, and Venezuela.


The ribbed mussel is primarily a filter feeder, and they help to clean said area of bacteria, parasites, and heavy metals. They feed on phytoplankton, bacteria, and non flagellates to gain nutrients.
The speed at which ribbed mussels feed changes with temperature which is partially due to the availability of their food, and they feed more when their environment is warmer. Location also plays a role in filtration rates due to food quality and availability.


Ribbed mussels live in the intertidal zone, attached to hard surfaces or embedded in sediment with the help of their byssal threads. They are typically found in salt marshes where they form dense aggregations with the marsh cordgrass (Spartina alterniflora) and each other since aggregating near one another decreases an individual's chance of being preyed on.
Ribbed mussels are highly effected by small variations in temperature which makes their placement in the marsh important due to how variable temperature can be in salt marshes. Mussels that are in dense Spartina patches tended to be warmer than those who were not, and the amount of air flow that mussels receive can make a difference as well. Their position in the depth of the sediment also effects their internal body temperature.
Another example of how important microhabitats are for ribbed mussels is tidal height. In higher tidal zones, ribbed mussels do not grow to full potential and there are few out there; however, they tend to be live long and have a better chance of survival.
Ribbed mussels face more predation on marsh edges as well. Some of their predators include birds, raccoons, and blue crabs.


Geukensia demissa is a species of mussel, a marine bivalve mollusk in the family Mytilidae, the true mussels. This species is native to the Atlantic coast of North America. The common names  for this species include ribbed mussel, Atlantic ribbed marsh mussel and ribbed horsemussel. However, the common name ribbed mussel is also used for the Southern Hemisphere mussel Aulacomya atra. The appearance of the shell is grooved and oval in shape. The interior of this mussel is tinted purple
The ribbed shells of this species usually attain a length of 10 cm length, and can be as large as 13 cm. Age can be determined by counting dark growth rings on the shell and mussels typically live 10 – 15 years, but more advanced ages are not uncommon.


Diadumene lineata, the orange-striped green sea anemone, has several morphotypes which have been described multiple times.


This species originated from the Pacific coast of Asia, but is currently found in the Northern Hemisphere. It has been found in Japan, the Gulf of Mexico (Verrill), Plymouth and Wells, Norfolk, England (R.B. Williams), Western Europe, the Mediterranean Sea, the Suez Canal, Malaysia (D. F. Dunn, California Academy of Sciences), and North America on the East Coast from Maine to Florida (L. L. Minasian, Myers 1977, Stephenson 1935, Sassaman and Mangum 1970, Shick, J. H. Ting 1983, Uchida 1932, G. M. Watson, W. E. Zamer 1999).  It has also been found in Hawaii and other sites of the Pacific Ocean.  Recently it has appeared in Argentina and other localities of South America. Distribution away from Asia may have occurred by attachment to ship bottoms, oyster shipments, and seaweed. These anemones target ecosystems that are barren landscapes or with low species diversity.  Appearing suddenly, populations quickly proliferate and colonize zones and alter natural balances.  Within short durations, they are known to vanish from the area quickly with no warning (Stephenson 1953). It is a member of the fouling community, but does not cause significant economic impacts.


This is a smaller species, measuring approximately 3.5 centimeters in diameter across its tentacles and 3 centimeters in height.  Its central column is green-gray to brown color and smooth.  The column, which houses the gastro vascular central cavity extends from the mouth to the attached base called the pedal disc.  It does not always have vertical stripes, which can be orange or white.  There are 50 to 100 slender and tapered tentacles which are able to retract completely into the column.  They are commonly transparent and can be gray or light green with white flecks (Christine 2001).
Many morphs occur for this species: Sagartia lineata (Verill, 1869 Hong Kong), Diadumene lineata (Verill 1870); Diaumene luciae (Stephenson, 1925);  Haliplanella luciae (Hand, 1955); Properly named D. lineata (Hand 1989). In a single population there may be one or several functioning variations of the species description (Hand, 1955b; Williams, 1973b). Population studies exhibiting morphs of several different communities were done along with personal communication from the following individuals (Parker 1919, Allee 1923, Stephenson 1935).  An un-striped population was found by D.F. Dunn in San Francisco Bay, California. Two morphs were found, one with twelve orange stripes on a green-brown column and one with 48 paired white stripes on a green column. These population studies were done in Indian Field Creek, Virginia and Barnstable Town Dock, Massachusetts by C.P. Mangum.


The hard clam (Mercenaria mercenaria), also known as the round clam, hard-shell (or hard-shelled) clam, or the quahog, is an edible marine bivalve mollusk that is native to the eastern shores of North America and Central America from Prince Edward Island to the Yucatán Peninsula. It is one of many unrelated edible bivalves that in the United States are frequently referred to simply as clams, as in the expression "clam digging". Older literature sources may use the systematic name Venus mercenaria; this species is in the family Veneridae, the venus clams.
Confusingly, the "ocean quahog" is a different species, Arctica islandica, which, although superficially similar in shape, is in a different family of bivalves: it is rounder than the hard clam, usually has black periostracum, and there is no pallial sinus in the interior of the shell.


The term "red tide" refers to an accumulation of a toxin, such as saxitoxin, produced by marine algae. Filter-feeding shellfish are affected, such as clams, oysters, and mussels. The toxin affects the human central nervous system. Eating contaminated shellfish, raw or cooked, can be fatal. Some other kinds of algal blooms make the seawater appear red, but red tide blooms do not always discolor the water, nor are they related to tides.


Quahog parasite unknown (QPX) is a parasite that affects the hard shell clam Mercenaria mercenaria. While little is known about the disease, research is currently under way in several laboratories. This research is fueled by the need to inform aquaculturists, who suffer financially because of the mortality rates in clams that QPX inflicts and the ensuing years in which runs must be left fallow to clear the disease. It was discovered along the coast of Cape Cod, Massachusetts in 1995.
Quahog parasite X (or quahog parasite unknown [QPX]) disease of the hard clam Mercenaria mercenaria is caused by a poorly known protistan parasite. Its DNA sequence analysis places the QPX parasite among the thraustochytrid stramenopiles. Thraustochytrids are common protists in marine sediments and the water column, but only a few thraustochytrids are known as parasites of marine animals. Although QPX disease was first recorded on the Atlantic coast of Canada in the early 1960s, it did not become a major economic problem until its appearance in cultured clams at Prince Edward Island, Massachusetts in 1992, and Virginia in 1997. Infected clams are characterized by the presence of blisters or pustules in the mantle and later by gaping and death.


The spiny seahorse is relatively rare but widespread throughout the Indo-Pacific. In Australia it has been reported from the south of Ashmore Reef, Timor Sea, the Great Barrier Reef, Queensland, and in Port Stephens, New South Wales. It is also found at Bali, Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, New Caledonia and Japan. The species favours relatively deep waters (10–95 m) and is usually found below 15 m depths. This species is found on a variety of substrates including sponges, weedy rocky reefs, soft corals but mainly on seagrass beds. ⁽ ⁾


The spiny seahorse is a small fish that can reach a maximum length of 15–17 cm.
The body is slender, elongated and completely covered with thorns. These are sharp with dark tips, and uniformly sized on the prehensile tail. The trunk has long thorns which continue until the coronet, which has 4–5. The head is also provided with numerous spines especially on the forehead, the base of the cheeks, the nose and above the eyes. The snout is very long and tapered. Body coloration is highly variable to match surroundings and goes from grey to cream, and from bright yellow, to green or red and even brownish. It can be plain or with different pattern on the side or/and on the backside. The snout is generally striped with one or more thin white lines.


The spiny seahorse (Hippocampus histrix), also referred to as the thorny seahorse, is a small marine fish in the family Syngnathidae, native to the Indo-Pacific area. It is classified as a Vulnerable species by the IUCN.


The spiny seahorse has a carnivorous diet and feeds on small crustaceans and other planktonic organisms.
It is ovoviviparous  and the female uses an ovipositor to transfer her eggs into an enclosed pouch under the abdomen of the male. It is the male who broods the eggs in its ventral brood pouch. The latter includes villi rich in capillaries that surround each fertilized egg creating a sort of placenta supplying the embryos.  The male fertilizes the eggs inside the pouch and provides physical protection for them as they develop. He also osmoregulates, aerates the embryos, and may provide some nourishment until the offspring are born.  When fully grown, pups will be expelled from the pocket and evolve in complete autonomy.


Balanus glandula (North American Acorn Barnacle, Common Acorn Barnacle) is one of the most common barnacle species on the Pacific coast of North America, distributed from the U.S. state of Alaska to Bahía de San Quintín near San Quintín, Baja California. They are commonly found in the upper intertidal zone on mussels, rocks and pier pilings. They can obtain oxygen from both water and air.
This acorn barnacle is a moderate-sized one with a diameter of up to 22 mm (0.9 in). The shell is formed by overlapping plates and has a calcareous basis. It has more the shape of a cylinder than the shape of a cone. The white operculum has heavily ridged walls. It can live up to ten years.
It has been intensely studied in recent years as a model species for linking physical oceanography and population genetics (or phylogeography) surveys. This species was introduced to the shores of Argentina in the 1960s, and has become an invasive species, displacing other barnacles and mussels.


Bluefish are widely distributed around the world in tropical and subtropical waters. They are found in pelagic waters on much of the continental shelves along eastern America (though not between south Florida and northern South America), Africa, the Mediterranean and Black Seas (and during migration in between), Southeast Asia, and Australia. They are found in a variety of coastal habitats: above the continental shelf, in energetic waters near surf beaches, or by rock headlands. They also enter estuaries and inhabit brackish waters. Periodically, they leave the coasts and migrate in schools through open waters.
Along the U.S. East Coast, bluefish are found off Florida in the winter. By April, they have disappeared, heading north. By June, they may be found off Massachusetts; in years of high abundance, stragglers may be found as far north as Nova Scotia. By October, they leave the waters north of New York City, heading south (whereas some bluefish, perhaps less migratory, are present in the Gulf of Mexico throughout the year). In a similar pattern overall, the economically significant population that spawns in Europe's Black Sea migrates south through Istanbul (Bosphorus, Sea of Marmara, Dardanelles, Aegean Sea) and on toward Turkey's Mediterranean coast in the autumn for the cold season.  Along the South African coast and environs, movement patterns are roughly in parallel.


As other fish, bluefish host a number of parasites. One spectacular parasite is Philometra saltatrix, a philometrid nematode in the ovaries. The females are brownish red and may be as long as 80 mm; the males are very small.


Adult bluefish are strong and aggressive, and live in loose groups. They are fast swimmers that prey on schools of forage fish, and continue attacking them in feeding frenzies even after they appear to have eaten their fill. Depending on area and season, they favor menhaden and other sardine-like fish (Clupeidae), jacks (Scombridae), weakfish (Sciaenidae), grunts (Haemulidae), striped anchovies (Engraulidae), shrimp, and squid. They are cannibalistic and can destroy their own young. Bluefish sometimes chase bait through the surf zone, attacking schools in very shallow water, churning the water like a washing machine. This behavior is sometimes referred to as a "bluefish blitz”.
In turn, bluefish are preyed upon by larger predators at all stages of their lifecycle.  As juveniles, they fall victim to a wide variety of oceanic predators, including striped bass, larger bluefish, fluke (summer flounder), weakfish, tuna, sharks, rays, and dolphins.  As adults, bluefish are taken by tuna, sharks, billfish, seals, sea lions, dolphins, porpoises, and many other species.
Bluefish are aggressive and have been known to inflict severe bites on fishermen. Wading or swimming among feeding bluefish schools can be dangerous. In July 2006, a seven-year-old girl was attacked on a beach, near the Spanish town of Alicante, allegedly by a bluefish. In New Jersey, the large beachfeeder schools are very common and lifeguards report never having seen bluefish bite bathers in their entire careers.