Today's Catch

Aug 16, 2012

Blacktip Sharks by Enric Sala

Enric Sala has spent much of his career looking for the ocean's "time machines" -- areas rich in biodiversity and largely unaffected by humans. In this recorded webcast, Sala, a National Geographic Ocean Fellow, takes the audience to the ocean's last wild places and tells us what scientists are trying to learn from them.

This picture, taken by Sala, shows a congregation of blacktip reef sharks in the lagoon of Millennium Atoll in the Southern Line Islands.

Biodiversity, National Geographic Society

CREDIT:
Enric Sala / National Geographic
Aug 15, 2012

Fossil tooth spiral

The fossil tooth whorl of the ancient shark Helicoprion, dating back 290 million years before present. For a long time, people didn't know what the shark looked like—but, thanks to a CT scan of a fossil, researchers finally put the pieces together in 2013. Read more about this story in our great white shark overview, and learn more about top predators like Helicoprion in the Ocean Over Time section.

Paleobiology, Smithsonian collections

CREDIT:
© Chip Clark/Smithsonian Institution
Aug 14, 2012

Reef Sharks Passing Through

Large numbers of grey reef sharks (Carcharhinus amblyrhynchos) were observed at Jarvis Island, an uninhabited Pacific island, during the 2010 Pacific RAMP expedition of the NOAA Ship Hi'ialakai.

But most reefs don't have so many sharks. Read about it in the blog post "Reef Sharks Repelled by People."

Coasts, Corals, NOAA, Pacific islands

CREDIT:
NOAA
Aug 13, 2012

Smithsonian Shark Teeth collection

An array of teeth from the sand tiger shark, Carcharias taurus. The Smithsonian has the largest collection of shark teeth in the world, with more than 90,000 fossil shark teeth. More about sharks and great whites can be found in our Great White Shark featured story.

Smithsonian collections

CREDIT:
© Robert Purdy/Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History
Aug 10, 2012

The Smithsonian Marine Collections

A behind the scenes look at the NMNH ocean-related collections and their importance to research and discovery.

Behind-the-scenes, Smithsonian collections, Smithsonian scientists

CREDIT:
Smithsonian Institution
Aug 9, 2012

Recliner Rudists

Where ocean currents were strong, ancient rudist “recliners” lay unattached on the seabed. Notice the pink tentacles, which were used to filter feed. Learn more about ocean life throughout deep time in our Ocean Over Time interactive or an image gallery.

Geologic time, Mollusks, Paleobiology, Scientific illustrations

CREDIT:
Mary Parrish/Smithsonian Institution
Aug 8, 2012

European Green Crab (Carcinus maenas)

The European green crab (Carcinus maenas) has spread far beyond its native continent, to waters off North and South America, Asia and Australia. It's a voracious eater and poses a nuisance to shellfish farmers. Invasive species have various means of reaching new habitats.

Crabs

CREDIT:
Filip Nuyttens, World Register of Marine Species
Aug 6, 2012

Dragonfish from Australia

Deep-sea species like this dragonfish (Bathophilus indicus) live in cold, dark waters and may go weeks or months between meals. When food is found, the fish uses its impressive teeth—including some on its tongue—to get a tight grip on its prey.

CREDIT:
Dr. Julian Finn, Museum Victoria
Aug 3, 2012

Arctic Copepod

This copepod Calanus hyperboreus (up to 7mm in length) lives in the Arctic, usually within 500 meters of the surface. To survive the cold Arctic winters, Calanus hyperboreus builds up dense fat (lipid) supplies on its body, which makes it a preferred food of both ctenophores and bowhead whales.

Arctic, Ctenophores, Whales, Zooplankton

CREDIT:
R. Hopcroft, UAF, Hidden Ocean 2005 NOAA.
Aug 2, 2012

Longsnout Seahorse

The longsnout seahorse (Hippocampus reidi) can be found near seagrasses, corals, sargassum and mangroves. These seahorses usually are between three to seven inches tall and could be threatened habitat destruction, bycatch and the collection and trading of the species.

Seahorses

CREDIT:
© 2004 Smithsonian Institution