Whale worm
NOT ON EXHIBIT
Natural History
Scientists working at the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute (MBARI) in 2004 discovered two new species of unique tubeworms that feed on the bones of dead whales. The worms are in a new genus called “Osedax,” which is Latin for “bone devourer.”
The worms’ bodies and feeding strategies are very different from most animals. They have no eyes, legs, mouths or stomachs, but they do have colorful feathery plumes and green “roots.” The reddish plumes extend into the water and act as gills. They connect to a muscular trunk, which can be withdrawn into a transparent tube when the worms are disturbed. At the other end of the trunk, hidden inside the whale bone, the body widens to form a large egg sac. The green roots, branching off from the egg sac, grow into the whale bone similar to the way garden plant roots spread into the ground. They are filled with symbiotic* bacteria that break down the fats and oils inside the bone, providing food for the worms. You can find more information and pictures of whale worms on the MBARI web site.
Conservation
Whale carcasses—or whale falls, as they are called—represent a massive input of food into the generally food-limited environment of the deep sea. One whale fall can provide as much organic material as thousands of years of marine snow, the organic debris that drifts down from surface waters to sustain life in the deep.
Commercial whaling which began in the 1800s may have driven some whale worm species to extinction. Many whale populations are estimated to be only ten to 25% of their historical levels despite the 1982 International Whaling Commission’s moratorium on commercial whaling. Fewer whales means fewer whale falls and less habitat for whale-fall species such as whale worms.
Cool Facts
Whale skeletons support so much life because they contain an enormous amount of oil. Large whale bones can be more than 60 percent oil by weight, for example a 90 ton whale is estimated to have 5 tons of oil in its bones, a veritable feast for oil-eating bacteria.
Scientists who discovered these tube worms were puzzled by the lack of male tube worms until a close-up examination of female worms revealed microscopic males living within their bodies. They looked as if they had never developed past their larval stage but they contained copious amounts of sperm. As many as 50-100 males may reside in one female. MBARI scientist Robert Vrijenhoek said “These worms appear to be the ecological equivalent of dandelions—a weedy species that grows rapidly, makes lots of eggs, and disperses far and wide.”
After a whale skeleton has been consumed, all the worms at that site will die off. Before this happens, they must release enough eggs or larvae so that some tiny proportion will be transported by the ocean currents and survive until they can find and colonize another whale carcass.
Cownose ray
NOT ON EXHIBIT
Natural History
Cownose rays have a unique feature—long, pointed pectoral fins that separate into two lobes in front of their high-domed heads. A crease in the lobes and a notched head create a cow-nose likeness that gives these rays their name. Cownose rays use their flexible fin lobes to probe the seafloor for prey, like clams. After detecting buried prey, they dig deep depressions in the sand by flapping their pectoral fins and, at the same time, sucking sand through their mouths and out their gill slits. As they forage, large schools of rays can stir up huge clouds of silt over a large area.The rays’ eyes and spiracles are on their brown upper bodies, and their mouths are on their white or yellowish underbellies. The rays have large, flat tooth plates on both jaws that they use to crush hard-shelled prey. The rays spit out crushed shells and eat the soft body parts.
Conservation
Cownose rays aren’t threatened. There is concern in Chesapeake Bay that an increase in the number of these rays is harming the already declining oyster population. One proposed solution is to allow commercial fishing for the rays, but it’s difficult and expensive to catch and process these rays. Cownose rays mature relatively late and have few offspring. Even though they have caused problems for the oyster fishery, cownose rays are an important part of the ecosystem.
Cool Facts
Cownose rays are known for their long migrations in large schools. They are strong swimmers, able to cover long distances. In the Atlantic Ocean, their migration is northward in the late spring and southward in the late fall. The population in the Gulf of Mexico migrates in schools of as many as 10,000 rays, clockwise from western Florida to the Yucatan in Mexico.
Cownose rays have poisonous stingers, but even in large groups they’re shy and not threatening. In 1608, Captain John Smith, an East Coast settler and explorer, learned about the nature of a cownose’s sting. While Smith was spearing a ray with his sword near the Rappahannock River, the ray defended itself by stinging Smith in the shoulder. The pain was so terrible that the crew were convinced Smith was dying, so they dug a grave for him. But John Smith overcame the pain and felt well enough that evening to eat the ray for supper. The place where this happened is still known as Stingray Point.
As this ray swims through the ocean, its wingtips often break the surface, resembling the dorsal fin of a shark, which sometimes causes undue alarm for swimmers and divers. Occasionally, they jump out of the water and land with a loud smack, a behavior thought to be a territorial display.
Sea pen
ON EXHIBIT
Natural History
A graceful creature of the seafloor, this sea pen resembles a plump, old-fashioned quill pen. Its colors range from dark orange to yellow to white.Each sea pen is a colony of polyps (small anemonelike individuals) working together for the survival of the whole. The primary polyp loses its tentacles and becomes the stalk of the sea pen, with a bulb at its base—the bulb anchors the sea pen in the muddy or sandy bottom. The various secondary polyps form the sea pen’s “branches” and have specialized functions. Some polyps feed by using nematocysts
to catch plankton; some polyps reproduce; and some force water in and out of canals that ventilate the colony.
Conservation
Once plentiful in parts of Puget Sound, sea pen populations have declined in those areas. Large numbers of their predators—sea stars and nudibranchs—have also disappeared, leaving some sandy-bottom areas vacant. This affects populations of creatures at the top of the food chain, too. Scientists haven’t determined the cause or causes of the disappearing sea pens, but their absence can indicate an ecosystem in trouble.
Cool Facts
The red star, the leather star and three types of nudibranchs prey on sea pens.
When disturbed, a sea pen forces water out of the colony, making it possible for the sea pen to retreat into its bulbous foot.
Sea pens are octocorals—each polyp has eight tentacles.
Sea pens glow with a bright-greenish light when stimulated.
Galapagos shark
NOT ON EXHIBIT
Natural History
Sharks come in many different shapes and sizes, but people are most familiar with the classic look of a Galapagos shark. Its body is solid, large and torpedo shaped—an efficient form for swimming. Dark gray above and lighter below, the Galapagos shark has no distinctive markings except for a ridge that runs between its dorsal (back) fins. If threatened by a predator or competitor, the shark arches its back, lowers its pectoral (side) fins and swims in figure-eight loops. If the intruder doesn’t heed this display, the Galapagos shark will chase and attack the intruder. Although Galapagos sharks are considered dangerous, they rarely attack humans.
Conservation
Sharks are often misunderstood; they’re not maniacal eating machines, eager to devour anything or everything in their path. Only about 30 of the approximately 350 species of sharks are dangerous, and even these rarely attack humans. People, however, are responsible for the death of 11,400 sharks every hour, every day. Since sharks grow slowly, breed late in life and generally bear few young, the populations of many species of sharks are declining dramatically. Without more regulations, many species will become extinct.
Cool Facts
This shark bears live young. The embryos receive nourishment from a placentalike attachment to the mother’s uterine wall.
A shark’s nose is superbly sensitive to some odors. It can detect blood in a concentration of only one part per million—the same as one teaspoon of blood in an average-size swimming pool.
Galapagos sharks are curious; they often gather around and bump into boats, oars, divers or anything else that seems to take their fancy.
To rid its stomach of an indigestible object, a shark pushes its stomach out through its mouth, expels the object and then pulls its stomach back into its proper place.
The man who first identified this shark named it after the Galapagos Islands, where he observed the sharks swimming in offshore waters.
Rough limpet
Natural History
Rough limpets sport bowl-shaped, heavily ribbed shells in brown or gray. Over time, using the scalloped edge of its shell, a rough limpet grinds a groove in a rock until the shell fits perfectly. These custom-made “homesites” are covered by water only during spring tides and/or when the surf is high. At other times, spray from strong waves reaches the limpets, but doesn’t cover them.When the rocks are wet, limpets move about, grazing on diatoms (microscopic plants) layered on the rocky surfaces. When the rocks are dry, limpets must take action to conserve moisture. They return to their homesites, where they snuggle in by clinging tightly with their muscular feet.
Conservation
While walking along a rocky shore, please don’t disturb limpets you might see tightly tucked into their “homesites.” They need to stay moist.
Oil from urban runoff or offshore oil spills could cover the grazing areas of the limpets. Proper disposal of motor oil, contaminants and harmful chemicals will help protect the well-being of limpets and other sea creatures.
Cool Facts
Rough limpets and their close relative, ribbed limpets, live in harmony in the splash zone—one lives on vertical rock faces, and the other lives on horizontal rock faces.
Rough limpets rasp diatoms from rocks using a radula—a tonguelike band of tiny teeth that contain iron particles.
Sunflower star
Natural History
An array of 24 arms distinguishes this magnificent sunflower star from other sea stars. Soft skin in colors ranging from purple to brown, orange or yellow adds to its beauty.For a sea star, this animal is a voracious predator. When on the prowl for food, the sunflower star swings along on its 15,000 tube feet—moving at the remarkable speed, for a sea star, of over 40 inches (1 m) per minute.
The sunstar's prey use a variety of escape tactics to avoid being trapped by the Pycnopodia’s tube feet. Snails and abalones violently twist their shells to loosen the star’s powerful grip; cockles lower their strong foot and pole-vault away; California sea cucumbers, usually sedentary, slither out of the way; and sea urchins flee. Both red and purple sea urchins deploy their pedicellariae (pinchers) to nibble on the star’s tube feet. The purple urchin seldom escapes, however the red sea urchin has another defense—long spines, which usually ensure its escape.
Conservation
Urban runoff and sewage spills harm sea stars and all creatures that live off our coasts.When you visit the shore, it’s best just to look, not touch or disturb the animals and plants that live there. Persistent ill-treatment of a sunstar can leave it in poor condition.
Cool Facts
Juvenile sunflower stars start life with five arms—by maturity they sport up to 24 arms.
Most sea stars have a one-piece, semirigid skeleton. However, the sunflower star’s skeleton has a few disconnected pieces. They allow the sunstar's mouth to open wide and its body to enlarge and take in big prey. A sunflower star can swallow an entire sea urchin, digest it internally and then expel the urchin’s test—its external shell.
In Monterey Bay, the sunflower star eats—in season—dead or dying squid. After the star digests the squid, the indigestible squid pen—its internal shell, which is too large to be defecated—works its way through the body wall.
Dolphinfish
ON EXHIBIT:
Open Sea
Natural History
Considered by many to be the most beautiful fish in the sea, the dolphinfish sports iridescent body colors—metallic blues and greens on the back and sides, with white and yellow underneath. Many dolphinfish have blue, green or black spots.A dolphinfish’s body is sleek and long, with a dorsal fin that extends from head to tail. A mature male’s forehead is high and sloping; a mature female’s forehead is less steep. That lunate (forked) tail propels this fast-swimming fish to speeds of 40 miles an hour.
Dolphinfish is a popular menu item. To distinguish it from dolphins (which are mammals), restaurants have popularized its Hawaiian name—mahi mahi.
Conservation
The dolphinfish are acrobatic, feisty fish, popular with recreational fishermen, and are sought after by commercial fisheries, which often catch them on longlines. Longlines can be 20 to 69 miles (32 to 111 km) long, with branch lines fitted with large hooks at each end. An average longline places 1,500 to 2,000 hooks in the water at the same time. Unfortunately, longlines attract and kill many types of animals, including sea turtles, seabirds and sharks. This “bycatch” of nontarget species makes longlining a significant threat to ocean wildlife.Dolphinfish have never had a scientific stock assessment. Hopefully, fishery research will show that this fish is abundant. In the meantime, some state councils on the East Coast are regulating dolphinfish catches. Learn more about whether mahi mahi is a sustainable seafood choice in the Seafood Watch section of our website.
Cool Facts
Dolphinfish live in the “fast lane.” They’re rapidly growing fish that can attain a length of over four feet in the first year of growth, and up to 6.5 feet in four years
Juvenile dolphinfish as well as several other species of pelagic fish are attracted to floating kelp mats, boats, sargassum, logs and debris. Since the floating objects don't provide food or much protection, scientists aren't sure why this is so.
Eroded periwinkle
ON EXHIBIT
Natural History
A dirty-gray eroded shell camouflages this periwinkle on rock faces in the high intertidal and splash zones. Only salt spray and splashes from high waves reach here, forming pools that dry in the sun. Out of reach of the tide, eroded periwinkles live out of the water most of the time.During dry periods, the periwinkle draws into its shell and closes its operculum (trap door)—this keeps its gills moist, and also keeps fresh water and dry winds out. A periwinkle secretes a mucous glue that holds its shell to its rocky home. Adult eroded periwinkles can survive in this mode for extended dry periods—up to 17 weeks.
Conservation
The hobby or business of collecting seashells, especially by killing live animals in their shells, causes problems for marine creatures and could seriously affect the population of some species of snails. Even empty shells have a place in the marine environment—many shells provide homes for other animals, like hermit crabs. Instead of collecting snails, it’s best to just look. Without disturbing them, you can photograph snails or make notes of their behavior and habits. Consider sending your observations to a marine biologist—you just might discover a behavior never before seen!
Cool Facts
Periwinkles can survive in fresh water—like puddles made by rain—for several days; most marine animals cannot.
A periwinkle, like most molluscs, uses a radula (a rough tongue or band of horny teeth) to scrape diatoms and algae from rocks. The rasping activity of the periwinkle may deepen high tide pools by almost one-half inch (1.25 cm) every 16 years. When a periwinkle population is thriving, it can considerably erode tide pools.
The checkered periwinkle, L. scutula, ranges from Alaska to Baja California. It lives lower down on the rocks than L. planaxis and is not as well adapted for dry periods. Instead, the checkered periwinkle migrates up and down rocks, following the high and low tides.
Apple anemone
NOT ON EXHIBIT
Natural History
The apple anemone is a delicate pink—a color much like a spring flower. Anemones—sometimes called flowers of the sea—are ancient and successful animals. They lack definite heads, but have a ring of tentacles around a mouth that opens into a tubelike body cavity, where food is digested. The tentacles of the apple anemone are stubby rather than long, and number at least 160 in adults.
The apple anemone is also known as the "cowardly" or "swimming" anemone. When disturbed, it can detach itself and "swim" to safer (usually deeper) waters, or form a tight, apple-shaped ball—a position it also takes when digesting food.
Conservation
Ninety percent of the living space on Earth is found in the ocean. Below the photic level (300 ft.)—which is too dark for photosynthesis—many, many animals depend on food that drifts down into the depths. If contaminants such as pesticides, used motor oil and paint solvents are dumped into storm drains, these harmful materials settle in the deep sea. To be stewards of the sea, we must dispose of harmful substances properly.
Cool Facts
The apple anemone is one of the largest anemones found in the deep sea.
The apple anemone has a broad column or base. But it's not immobile as are most anemones. When threatened, it elongates and sways from side to side to detach itself from the bottom. It then "swims" away by rapidly flexing or bending its column or by thrashing its tentacles.
White sturgeon
Natural History
The white sturgeon is like no other fish! Instead of scales, five rows of bony plates (scutes) reach from its gills to its tail, covering its sandpaperlike skin. It also has sharklike qualities including a cartilaginous skeleton and a sharklike tail.Mostly a bottom-dweller, a white sturgeon spends its time rummaging on the seafloor for food. Unlike most other fishes, its taste buds are on the outside of its mouth. These taste buds, along with barbels (feelers) under the sturgeon’s snout, help the fish select food, and a toothless mouth sucks it up.
Conservation
In the late 1800s, commercial fisheries began to supply the demand for caviar (sturgeon eggs) and smoked sturgeon. The fisheries grew rapidly—too rapidly. They collapsed in the late 1890s due to overfishing. In 1917, California banned commercial and sport fishing of white sturgeon.Along with overfishing, habitat destruction—including dams that close off spawning grounds—and pollution contributed to the decrease in white sturgeon populations. Management of the fisheries is improving. As of 1997 in San Francisco Bay, the white sturgeon population is now larger than it has been since the 19th century.
Environmentally safe farms now raise white sturgeon for fillets and caviar.
Cool Facts
White sturgeon are the largest freshwater fish in North America. The largest on record weighed 1,500 pounds (628 kg).
The white sturgeon grows slowly, maturing in eight to 20 years, depending on location. Fish in the south of its range mature faster than those in the north. White sturgeon produce 100,000 to four million eggs per spawning, but they spawn only once every two to eight years.
In the past, isinglass—an almost pure gelatin prepared from the lining of sturgeon air bladders—was often used as a clarifying agent and as glue. In spite of modern substitutes for isinglass, it’s still used to clarify white wines and for glue and sizing in art restoration work.
Giant kelp
ON EXHIBIT
Natural History
This majestic giant of the kelp forest grows faster than tropical bamboo—about three to five inches each day in our exhibit and 10-12 inches in the bay. Under ideal conditions, giant kelp can grow an astonishing two feet each day.
Held upright by gas-filled bladders at the base of leaflike blades, kelp fronds grow straight up to the surface, where they spread across the top of the water to form a dense canopy. Giant kelp often grows in turbulent water, which brings renewed supplies of nutrients, allowing the plants to grow to a possible height of 175 feet. The stemlike stipes are tough but flexible, allowing the kelp to sway in ocean currents. Unlike a proper root system, the holdfast — a coneshaped mass of branching extensions called haptera — doesn’t carry nutrients or water; it anchors the kelp to a rock.
Conservation
During a population surge, sea urchins—which normally eat pieces of kelp that fall to the seafloor—will feed on the stipes of giant kelp plants and can completely destroy a kelp bed. Otters, voracious eaters, have helped preserve kelp forests by feeding on urchins.
Kelp is harvested for use in aquaculture. Studies seem to show little, if any, negative affects from harvesting. Kelp could be seen as a renewable resource.
Sludge, silt or sewage dumped near kelp forests can cover and destroy the microscopic stage of giant kelp.
Cool Facts
Giant kelp is harvested as a source of algin, an emulsifying and binding agent used in the production of many foods and cosmetics, like ice cream, toothpaste and cereals.
Pieces of decomposing kelp (detritus) sink to the depths of the ocean, providing food for deep sea creatures.
Giant kelp has a multitude of inhabitants. Invertebrates graze on the blades, fish seek shelter in the fronds and thousands of invertebrates live in the holdfast—such as brittle stars, sea stars, anemones, sponges and tunicates. Sea otters like to hang out in the kelp forest, where they find their favorite food and can wrap up in a kelp frond to keep from drifting away at naptime.
As kelp grows, a blade at the tip of each frond separates, producing a series of tiny new blades. The logo of the Monterey Bay Aquarium represents the tip of a growing kelp plant.
Scalloped hammerhead shark
ON EXHIBIT:
Open Sea
Natural History
With that wide, thick head shaped like a double-headed hammer, it’s easy to identify a hammerhead shark. You can tell it from other hammerheads by the ridges along the front edge of its head. The shark’s eyes and nostrils are located at the extreme ends of its head. Perhaps this unusual shape gives the sharks added lift and lets them make sharper turns than other sharks. The location of the eyes may also allow better stereoscopic vision. The broad shape of the head enables the shark’s sensing organs, called the ampullae of Lorenzini, to find prey buried in the sand (such as stingrays).
Conservation
Commercial fisheries catch hammerheads for their oil, meat and skin. At certain times of the year, scalloped hammerheads swim in schools of several hundred animals—unusual behavior for predators at the top of the food chain. This schooling pattern makes them easy prey for fishermen targeting large catches. Also a popular sport fishery, hammerheads are caught accidentally by longlining
crews fishing for swordfish and tuna.
Cool Facts
In general, hammerheads aren’t aggressive toward humans, although on rare occasions larger sharks have attacked people. (It’s possible that these sharks are a separate species, the great hammerhead, Sphyrna mokarran.) Their uncommonly small mouths are much better suited for eating fishes.
Scalloped hammerheads commonly prey on stingrays. One shark was found with 96 venomous stingray barbs imbedded in its mouth and jaws. We don’t know much about how the barbs affect the sharks, or how the sharks get rid of them.
Cross jelly
ON EXHIBIT:
The Jellies Experience
Natural History
This jelly is commonly seen in Monterey Bay during spring and summer, sometimes in large groups. Growing to about four inches in diameter, a cross jelly's bell is rimmed with hundreds of fine white tentacles and is bioluminescent. Four white canals visible under the transparent bell form an obvious "X" pattern, after which the cross jelly was named.
Conservation
Jelly populations naturally ebb and flow. Scientists are now wondering whether human impacts like overfishing, pollution and possibly climate changes might affect jelly populations also.
Cool Facts
Recent studies by the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute (MBARI) suggest that the cross jelly (and possibly other jelly species) can "smell" food in the water, indicating that it might actually pursue prey rather than rely on chance encounters. This might explain why cross jellies are often seen in large groups around concentrations of prey.
Yellow-headed jawfish
ON EXHIBIT
Natural History
Yellow-headed jawfish live in patches of sand and coral rubble around the edges of reefs. With no place to hide in these open areas, jawfish dig in, building burrows into the sand. When danger threatens, they dive for cover into their burrow. When the coast is clear, they hover over their burrows waiting to snap up small animals that drift by on the currents.Always industrious, jawfish keep their burrows shaped up. They line the entrance with rocky rubble so it won't cave in, and they're forever shoveling out mouthfuls of sand. They sometimes raid a neighbor's burrow for choice pebbles and shells.
Conservation
Coral reefs around the world are in danger. Silt (fine soil) smothers coral when it washes off the land from farm fields, roads and building sites. More towns and resorts near shore mean more sewage, oil and chemicals in the water. Global warming and changes in weather patterns create conditions that corals can't survive.
Cool Facts
The Spanish name for jawfishes is “bocas grandes,” meaning “big mouths.” Jawfishes use their big mouths like scoops as they move sand and rocks while digging their burrows.
Besides serving as scoops, jawfishes' big mouths come in handy at mating time. The males carry their eggs inside their mouths until they hatch. Males can be territorial; they may use their mouths to “joust” with other jawfishes.
Coralline sculpin
ON EXHIBIT
Natural History
Coralline sculpins hug the bottoms of Pacific coast tide pools. Although common, these fishes can be hard to see—their colors blend in well as they hide among seaweeds and rocks. Their camouflage makes it hard for bigger fishes and hungry birds to find them.
As the tide comes in, coralline sculpins often leave their home pools and follow the incoming water to hunt in pools higher up. When the tide falls again, they head straight back to the pool in which they started.
Conservation
You can help protect rocky shores. When you visit the seashore, pick up trash and carry it out with you. Aluminum cans, fishing line and plastic rings can harm ocean animals. And please leave rocky shore plants and animals where you find them.
Cool Facts
This is one of the "tidepool johnnies," a group of small sculpins you're most likely to spot when you visit a tide pool.
Two-spotted octopus
NOT ON EXHIBIT
Natural History
A two-spotted octopus spends most of the time hiding or searching for food on the seafloor. Using its arms and suckers it can slowly creep or quickly crawl. But if it's in danger, the octopus may jet away into open water. Two blue, eyelike spots on the web just below the eyes give this octopus its name.
Conservation
Octopuses are very sensitive to impaired water quality. Many species live in coastal waters that receive the toxic cocktail of runoff from industry, agriculture and municipal wastes.
Cool Facts
Females tend their eggs continuously for two to four months until they hatch.
Pelagic cormorant
NOT ON EXHIBIT
Natural History
Pelagic cormorants live along open, windswept coasts. They nest along with other cormorants and other seabirds on steep, remote cliffs where they’re safer from predators. Unlike Brandt's cormorants, which sometimes hunt cooperatively, pelagic cormorants hunt alone, often diving into heavy surf for crabs, worms and small fishes. Though they often dive in shallow water along the shores, they also can make very deep dives—sometimes to 180 feet (55 m) or more.
Conservation
Cormorants feed largely on fish of little commercial value, though in times past they were harassed by fishers who blamed the birds for depleting their catches.
Safe nesting sites are becoming scarcer for cormorants and other seabirds.
Cool Facts
Pelagic cormorants will use one nest for several years, piling up seaweed, grass and ocean debris until the mound is five to six feet high.
Symbiotic clam
NOT ON EXHIBIT
Natural History
In parts of Monterey Bay, sulfide can be found within the muddy seafloor. Clams living in the mud absorb this toxic chemical through their feet. The clams carry the sulfide to bacteria living inside their bodies. The bacteria use the sulfide to make food, which in turn provides nutrients for the clams.
Conservation
The deep sea may seem remote, but what we send down will eventually cycle back up into our lives. Deep-sea animals are part of a thriving ecosystem. Our trash and chemicals may harm them if we are careless with our waste.
Cool Facts
These clams may take up to 100 years to reach maturity.
Pom-pom anemone
NOT ON EXHIBIT
Natural History
A pom-pom anemone takes on a variety of shapes—from low and flat to round and puffy. In fact, scientists have seen puffed up anemones rolling across the seafloor like living tumbleweeds, “blown” by deep sea currents. Scientists aren’t sure why pom-pom anemones change shape and roll around––they might be looking for “greener pastures,” where there’s more food to eat.
Conservation
Anything that finds its way into the ocean, whether it's tossed away as trash, washes off a beach or falls off a boat, may eventually make its way to the deep sea. It's important to realize that the deep sea is not so far away that it's beyond the reach of human activities. Living creatures in the deep are affected by what we do at the surface.
Cool Facts
A pom-pom anemone's stinging tentacles capture crustaceans and krill swimming by.
Filetail catshark
NOT ON EXHIBIT
Natural History
The filetail catshark gets its common name from the toothlike projections on its skin. Catsharks in general are relatively small, usually 12 to 39 inches long (30-100 cm), with flat heads and long, catlike eyes. Their teeth are very small and they have several rows of teeth in each jaw.When a light shines on a catshark’s eyes, they glow—much like a cat’s eyes do. That’s because cats and sharks have special light-sensitive eyes designed for hunting in near-darkness. A catshark is always on the prowl. When a fish or squid swims nearby, the catshark lunges with its mouth wide open—and makes a quick meal of its prey.
Conservation
Sharks, skates and rays live longer and produce fewer offspring than most other kinds of fishes, and that makes them particularly vulnerable to overfishing. Declining catch rates indicate that shark populations are rapidly decreasing in many parts of the world.
Cool Facts
It takes two years for catsharks to emerge from their egg cases.
Spotted ratfish
NOT ON EXHIBIT
Natural History
These fish have smooth skin, large green eyes, a rabbitlike face and a mouth with plate-like grinding teeth. The tail is tiny and streamer-like, so for propulsion they flap their large, wing-like pectoral fins. Ratfish cruise just above the seafloor searching for crunchy food like crabs and clams.
Spotted ratfish are among the deepest-living fishes in Monterey Bay. They are related to sharks and are considered the missing link between the bony and cartilainous fishes because they have the characteristics of both.
Conservation
Ratfish are caught accidentally in trawl fisheries.
Cool Facts
These fish have a long venemous spine in front of the dorsal fin.
Big skate
Natural History
Big skates have two large, black spots on their fins, which resemble large eyes. Scientists think these “eyes” might confuse predators or make a small skate look larger and less vulnerable to a hungry shark.Big skates hide in the sand and mud along the seafloor, with only their eyes protruding. Their gray, mottled bodies blend into the background of the seafloor; this camouflage protects them from predators like sharks.
Conservation
Sharks, skates and rays live longer and produce fewer offspring than most other kinds of fishes, and that makes them particularly vulnerable to overfishing. Declining catch rates indicate that shark populations are rapidly decreasing in many parts of the world.
Cool Facts
The largest big skate on record was eight feet (2.4 m) long!
Pacific hagfish
NOT ON EXHIBIT
Natural History
Also known as slime eels, hagfish are primitive fishes. They have five hearts, no jaws, no true eyes and no stomach. They have poor vision but a very good sense of smell and touch. Hagfish live in burrows on the seafloor and locate their food by smelling and feeling as they swim. They prey on small invertebrates living in the mud, as well as scavenging dead and dying fish. They are noted for their unusual way of feeding—they slither into dead or dying fishes and eat them from the inside out, using their "rasping tongue" to carry food into their funnel-shaped mouth.
Hagfish are notorious for their defensive slime. They secrete a sugar and protein matrix into the seawater. When expelled, it mixes with the saltwater and becomes a slippery slime. Protein strands within the slime make it extremely sticky.
Conservation
Anything that finds its way into the ocean, whether it's tossed away as trash, washes off a beach or falls off a boat, may eventually make its way to the deep sea. It's important to realize that the deep sea is not so far away that it's beyond the reach of human activities. Living creatures in the deep are affected by what we do at the surface.
Cool Facts
Some so-called “eel-skin” wallets are actually made from hagfish.
Sperm whale
NOT ON EXHIBIT
Natural History
Largest of the toothed whales, sperm whales are unique and easy to identify. They have unusually large heads (one-third their body length); narrow, almost hidden lower jaws and off-center blows. Their dark brown to dark gray skin often includes narrow white markings around their mouths and the skin on the back of the whale is usually knobby, giving them a prunelike appearance. That bulging forehead (melon) contains spermaceti, a semi-liquid white oil. Early whalers thought the oil was sperm, hence the sperm whales’common name.
The male and female sperm whales differ greatly. Males are typically 30-50% larger than females and weigh about twice as much. Males’ lower jaws have 20 to 30 pairs of large (up to 10 inches long) cone-shaped teeth that are designed for grasping slippery prey such as squid, rather than cutting. Females have smaller and fewer teeth.
Conservation
In the past, whalers hunted sperm whales for spermaceti, fine oil used to make high-quality candles and lubricants. Estimates vary widely regarding the present population of sperm whales. The American Cetacean Society states, "Most recent estimates suggest a global population of 300,000 animals, down from about 1,100,000 before whaling." The sperm whale population is slow to recover because these animals mature late and have few offspring. Sperm whales are listed on the U.S. Endangered Species List. Hunting of sperm whales is banned nearly worldwide.
Cool Facts
The sperm whale was celebrated as the “great white whale” named Moby Dick in Herman Melville’s novel of that name.
It is hypothesized that the sharp beaks of consumed squid lodged in the whale’s intestine leads to the production of the waxy substance called ambergris. Lumps of ambergris are found in the intestines of dead sperm whales or as flotsam on the sea or sea coast. When fresh, it has a foul smell, but when dried, it has a strong, musklike odor. Its primary use was as a fixative in fine perfumes, and ambergris was once worth its weight in gold. Today it’s illegal to possess, buy or sell ambergris in the United States.
Sperm whales “see” in the dark depths of the ocean by using sonar or echolocation. The melon focuses sound waves toward objects and prey. When sound waves echo back, they tell the whales the objects’ positions, distances and sizes. Authorities believe that sperm whales can produce a powerful sonic blast by using the spermaceti organ as an amplifier. A strong blast stuns squid, which allows whales to swallow squid whole. (Giant squid may reach 60 feet in length.) Whalers have found sperm whales with no teeth or with broken jaws, yet they have a belly full of squid. Were the squid stunned by a sonic blast? Sperm whales can dive to 9,850 feet (3000 m) and stay under water for up to two hours.
Tadpole snailfish
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Natural History
This tiny fish wiggles like a tadpole, with its large head and narrow tail. It’s soft and flabby—loose skin covers its jellylike body. The snailfish makes a tender meal for other deep sea fishes.
Conservation
Anything that finds its way into the ocean, whether it's tossed away as trash, washes off a beach or falls off a boat, may eventually make its way to the deep sea. It's important to realize that the deep sea is not so far away that it's beyond the reach of human activities. Living creatures in the deep are affected by what we do at the surface.
Cool Facts
Giant ostracod
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Natural History
Since they look like a shrimp inside a seed pod, ostracods are sometimes called seed shrimp. Their bodies are hinged, like a clam’s, and they can disappear into their pods with only their antennae showing. When the pod is open, the featherlike antennae stick out to move, feel and feed. The giant ostracod swims by rowing its antennae like oars.
Conservation
Anything that finds its way into the ocean—whether it's tossed away as trash or washed off a beach or boat—may eventually make its way to the deep sea. It's important to realize that the deep sea is not so far away that it's beyond the reach of human activities. Living creatures in the deep are affected by what we do at the surface.
Cool Facts
The giant ostracod is bright orange-red and has two large, mirrored eyes.
Spiny king crab
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Natural History
Spiny king crabs prowl the deep seafloor for live food, eating other crabs and sea stars. But when they can’t find fresh food, they’re quick to lunch on leftover scraps or dead animals that fall from above. This crab has clutching claws and fast-moving mouth parts—they help the crab grab food, tear it apart and shovel the pieces into its mouth.
Conservation
In Monterey Bay, local fishers catch these king crabs using traps. Trapping is generally a safe way to catch seafood, as unwanted animals can be released unharmed.
Cool Facts
Sharp spikes protrude from this crab’s body, offering protection from predators.
Sea whip
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Natural History
A single sea whip is actually a colony of many small animals that look like little anemones. They catch food for the entire colony with their stinging tentacles.
Conservation
Sea whips (and their relatives, the sea fans and gorgonians)grow very slowly. In some areas, fishing trawlers snag and destroy many sea fans in their nets—some trawled near Nova Scotia were over six feet tall and 500 years old! And, because sea whips and other slow-growing deep-sea animals provide shelter for young fishes and other organisms, removing the sea whips can affect many other species.
Cool Facts
When disturbed, sea whips glow with a bright, bioluminescent light.
Giant red mysid
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Natural History
A giant red mysid grows to be about four inches (10 cm) long—although one was found to be over 12 inches (32 cm) long. Its brilliant red color provides a clue to life in the midwater: red appears black in the dim blue-green light of the midwater, so this bright red animal is actually camouflaged.A mysid might seem like an easy meal for a hungry fish with big teeth. But this shrimplike animal packs a secret weapon. When a fish threatens to eat it, a mysid spits out glowing fluid. The sudden flash of light distracts the attacker and gives the mysid time to swim away.
Conservation
Anything that finds its way into the ocean, whether it's tossed away as trash, washes off a beach or falls off a boat, may eventually make its way to the deep sea. It's important to realize that the deep sea is not so far away that it's beyond the reach of human activities. Living creatures in the deep are affected by what we do at the surface.
Cool Facts
This large mysid has an armored shell equipped with spikes to deter hungry predators.
Deep sea anglerfish
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Natural History
In some species of anglerfish, the males are tiny, with simplified body features, and they live as parasites on the females. This is thought to be an adaptation to save energy, allowing the females to feed on whatever food is available. The males seem to have evolved for one purpose only: to find a female and deliver sperm.In Oneirodes, the males are free-living but much tinier than the females, and they lack teeth. Males have extremely large nostrils and a powerful sense of smell, which they use to locate females. The females apparently release a special chemical that males can detect and follow. Such special chemicals are called pheromones.
Conservation
The deep sea may seem remote, but what we send down will eventually cycle back up into our lives. Deep-sea animals are part of a thriving ecosystem. Our trash and chemicals may harm them if we are careless with our waste.
Cool Facts
The "fishing rod" growing from the female anglerfish's snout ends in a glowing blob of light. At the tip of this modified fin ray, is a small organ (esca) that contains millions of light-producing bacteria.
Spot prawn
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Natural History
The spot prawn is the largest shrimp in the U.S. West Coast. This shrimp has a big problem: it's one of the reef fishes' favorite foods. Though it hides 700 feet (213 meters) deep in rocky canyons, the prawn also falls prey to the commercial fishers of Monterey Bay.
Conservation
Spot prawns are popular seafood. For decades, they've been caught in traps, which seems to have had little impact on their population. But as the demand for spot prawns grows, fishermen have begun large-scale harvests using trawl nets, which may both decrease their numbers and damage the habitat where they live.
Cool Facts
Spot sprawns change sex as they grow. They spend the first part of their lives as males, then change into females.
Sea hare
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Natural History
Each sea hare is both male and female and has both sexual organs. Sea hares may lay up to eighty million eggs apiece. But most of these are eaten by predators.
Conservation
Many kinds of plants, birds, fish, shellfish and other animals depend on the special mix of fresh and salt water found in sloughs and estuaries. When we protect wetlands against development, we protect the homes of many animals.
Cool Facts
When threatened by predators, sea hares release a dark purple fluid in defense. The ink gets its purple color from a pigment in the red algae that makes up part of the sea hare's diet.
Sea hares can't see like we do; their simple eyes can only tell light from dark.
American dune grass
Natural History
This hardy grass grows on the dunes just above the beach. By anchoring shifting sand and cutting coastal winds, dune grass creates a place where other plants can grow more easily.Established coastal sand dunes guard the coast against storm waves that could flood the land beyond the dunes. Conditions here are harsh for plants; few nutrients, almost no water, extreme temperature changes and blowing sand characterize dune habitats. But dune grass’s special adaptations make survival possible—its thick, shiny leaves prevent loss of water and also reflect drying sunlight.
The first colonizers of newly formed sand dunes must grow and establish themselves before the sand shifts beneath their "feet." American dune grass is one of these important pioneer plants. It has long, underground stems (rhizomes) that send shoots upward and roots downward. These rhizomes anchor American dune grass and the surrounding shifting sand, creating places where other dune plants can survive.
Conservation
Beaches and dunes are extreme environments, with pounding surf, blowing sand and blazing sun. Plants and animals here "live on the edge," often very susceptible to human impacts.
Cool Facts
Native people wove dried brown leaves of dune grass into mats, baskets, tote sacks and ropes. They used the tough, sharply pointed leaves as “needles and thread” for sewing.
Marram dune grass, a European native introduced into North America to stabilize dunes, is aggressive and has been crowding out our native L. mollis.
Dune grasses have a symbiotic relationship with underground fungi. The fungi decompose organic material, which supplies nutrients and water to dune grasses. The dune grasses, in turn, supply food (carbohydrates) for the fungi.
This grass grows from spreading, underground stems that help keep it from being buried by wind-blown sand.
Sea nettle
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Natural History
Not all jellies sting, but the sea nettle does. It hunts tiny drifting animals by trailing those long tentacles and frilly mouth-arms, all covered with stinging cells. When the tentacles touch prey, the stinging cells paralyze it and stick tight. From there, the prey is moved to the mouth-arms and finally to the mouth, where it's digested.
Conservation
There is mounting evidence that human influences in coastal habitats may be creating conditions more favorable to jellies, leading to an increased frequency of blooms and reduced populations of larval fishes. The high abundance of sea nettles makes scientists believe they play a significant role in the planktonic food chain. They may seem insignificant when washed up on a beach, but gelatinous animals are certainly worthy of our attention and study.
Cool Facts
Some jellies commute 3,600 feet (1,097 m) up and down in the water daily—try that without a submarine!
Larval and juvenile cancer crabs may hitch rides on the sea nettle's mouth-arms, dropping off as the jelly comes inshore. These crabs may be feeding on the jelly, as many of the jellies with crabs have been observed to be quite tattered.