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The first known filter feeder is a large shrimp-like creature called Tamisiocaris borealis. The feather-like structures on its head were used to rake plankton from the sea.

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The First Filter Feeder

Today, filter feeders like clams, sponges, krill, baleen whales, fishes, and many...

red worms penetrate holes in bone

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Zombie Worms Eating Whale Bone

Zombie worms (Osedax roseus) eat away at the bones of a dead whale that has fallen...

The giant pacific octopus can grow up to 600 pounds!

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Revealing the Largest Octopus

Weighing 600 pounds (around 272kg) and having a 30 foot (around 9 meters) arm span,...

On a seamount peak, a huge colony of brittle stars (likely Ophiacantha rosea) feeds on passing particles.

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Millions of Brittle Stars

A huge colony of brittle stars (likely Ophiacantha rosea) covers the peak of a...

An elephant seal with round scars from a cookie-cutter shark lays on the beach.

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Cookie-cutter Shark

Ever heard of a cookie-cutter shark (Isistius brasiliensis)? They look like your...

Photo Spread showing a shrimp cleaning a fishes mouth from Citizens of the Sea

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Open Wide: Photo Spread from Citizens of the Sea

"Open Wide" spread from Citizens of the Sea by Nancy Knowlton. ...

A deep-water larvacean (aka “sea tadpole”) inside its home.

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Deep-Water Larvacean, or “Sea-Tadpole”

In the icy waters of the Arctic, a deep-water larvacean (aka “sea tadpole”...

A transparent ctenophore in dark water.

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A Ctenophore Feeds

The comb jelly (ctenophore) Thalassocalyce inconstans is found in shallow to deep...

Despite its demonic look, the vampire squid collects and eats drifting particles called "marine snow" using two long, sticky filaments.

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The Vampire Squid from Hell

With a scientific name that means "the vampire squid from hell," you'd expect the...

Twin-spot snappers are curious top predators on Pacific coral reefs, eating a variety of fishes, shrimps, crabs, and snails among others, and are usually around 2.5 feet long.

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Curious Bohar

The twin-spot snapper (Lutjanus bohar) is one of the more curious predators in the...

Magellanic penguin parents typically lay two eggs under a bush or in a burrow, taking turns swimming out to sea to catch food for their chicks.

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Magellanic Penguin Parent and Chick

A parent Magellanic penguin (Spheniscus magellanicus) sits with its big chick....

Madison Stewart, known to many simply as “shark girl,” is an inspiring young woman with a passion to protect the creatures most people fear: sharks. She’s been diving with sharks since the age of twelve. Here she is feeding a group of Caribbean reef

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Shark Girl With Caribbean Reef Sharks

Known to many simply as “shark girl,” Madison Stewart is an inspiring...