There are two types of ocean observers in the world: those who gaze into the eyes of a giant deep-sea isopod and see absolute adorableness, and those who find them completely creepy. Which team are you?

Ready to embrace the sea-crets of the deep?

Uncover your enchanting aquatic alter ego by taking our new deep-sea personality quiz here!

Thank you MBARI for the deep-sea footage!

Porcellio scaber “Blush” being simply exquisite. I love how dainty and expressive isopod antennae are—they show exactly what he is focusing on and where he wants to go.

so far he and his probable brother (now deceased) are the only two of these, but hope his little kids carry the mutation and can breed more

Porcellio scaber 'Cowlitz Purple'

A purple morph produced by a simple recessive gene. Probably a type of hypomelanism.

This morph is now two years old! Originating from a wild caught male/female pair. The babies are born pink with red eyes and darken overtime until they're about the color of a concord grape with dark eyes.

'pod girl gang

an unnamed Porcellio scaber morph I’m working on. it seems there’s multiple alleles that add to the light skirt effect and a pale gradient along the back, so breeding them is a little inconsistent. these are some of the nicest looking ones, love their facial markings.

unfortunately this also a line bred from a cross involving “Orange Dalmatian” and I wouldn’t be surprised if both of those genes reappear later.

Epigenised (Opal-CT, Lussatite) Helix Ramondi snail fossil, from Dallet, Puy-De-Dôme, France.

invertober 2023 COMPLETED. presented here slightly out of order for aesthetic reasons

Well hello there... just a chonky Cadoceras ammonite passing by

it's late but it's still Weevil Wednesday. have some more fun neotropical specimens.

Next time someone starts talking about Thylacines I want people to bring up Florida Fairy Shrimp (Dexteria floridana). Lived in Gainesville (University of Florida) but quietly got paved over at some point. No sad videos, no vocal recordings, just a few dead shrimp in the Smithsonian and these drawings. Their only fault was being too small and quiet for people to notice.

chimney swifts are so weirddd theyre like if birds decided to be bats.

thats bats. those are bats. to me

@todaysbird

POV: You’re so photogenic, you’ve never had a bad profile pic

We think you’ll agree that the purple striped jelly is stunning. 😎 From its silvery white body with deep-purple bands, to its opulent oral arms and trailing tentacles — it’s both bold and beautiful. 

Looking for some ocean facts? Snot a problem!

Behold: hagfish! Sometimes they’re called slime eels.

But that’s just one small fact. What about another one? When it comes to changing sex, hagfish can do it ALL🌟 Male to female? Yup. Female to male? You betcha. Chill in a mysterious gender void? Duh. Hagfish can even change sex from season to season!

There’s still a lot scientists are learning about hagfish, but one thing we do know is how they’ve wriggled their way into our hearts. And with these fun facts, we hope they wriggle their way into your heart too.

🦀 Happy Crab Day, Tumblr! 🦀

may it be ✨ crabulous ✨

sad news today. Beeftongue, slug beloved, is no more. it lived just over a year, a good long time for a Florida leatherleaf, and tasted dozens of lettuces and other delicious vegetation beyond any slug’s dreams. found under a fallen stop sign in Miami, I was honored to share some time with this awesome beast.

farewell, Beef.

Beeftongue is survived by Bupkis, who continues to stubbornly exist despite being over 2, and all of its brood

RIP Beef you were beloved by many 🖤