Open Sea Animals

Green sea turtle

Sea turtles travel far, riding currents across the ocean. Females return to the same beach each year, using magnetic clues as a map, and lay close to 100 eggs. She then buries them under a sandy blanket and returns to the sea.

Tufted puffin

Its bright colors have earned the tufted puffin the nickname, "parrot of the sea," but this beautiful bird is at home on land as well. In early spring, its beak and feet turn a vibrant orange in preparation for breeding season.

Scalloped hammerhead shark

With that wide, thick head shaped like a double-headed hammer, it's easy to identify a hammerhead shark. The shark's eyes and nostrils are located at the extreme ends of its head, which may give it added lift and let it make sharper turns than other sharks.

Ocean sunfish

Ocean sunfish, or molas, look like the invention of a mad scientist. Huge and flat, these silvery-gray fish have tiny mouths and big eyes that vanish into an even bigger body with a truncated tail. They can weigh up to 5,000 pounds!

Moon jelly

These alien-looking creatures are named for their translucent, moonlike circular bells. Instead of long, trailing tentacles, moon jellies have a short, fine fringe (cilia) that sweeps in food, where it’s stored in pouches until the oral arms pick it up and digest it.

Pacific bluefin tuna

Bluefin tuna are some of the largest and fastest fish in the ocean-they're powerful swimmers, built for endurance and speed. To help conserve energy on their long-distance journeys, tuna's bodies are almost perfectly streamlined, reducing drag around their fins.