Harlequin shrimp (Hymenocera elegans). Philippines.
A crinoid (Crinoid sp) looking stylish at night. Indonesia.
Emperor shrimp (Periclimenes imperator) on a sea cucumber. Indonesia.
Blue-ringed octopus (Hapalochlaena lunulata) juvenile on Halimeda algae. Papua New Guinea.
Dozens of starfish cover a sand bed at Cocos Island. Costa Rica.
Swimming pelagic marine copepod (5.7 mm). Hawaii.
Blue starfish and soft coral reef scene. Indonesia.
Two bubble coral shrimp (Vir philippinensis) in an anemone. Papua New Guinea.
Crown jellyfish (Cephea cephea) on a night dive. Crown jellyfish have a deep groove running around the bell, giving them the crown shape from which they take their name. Hawaii.
Collected pink jellyfish (Pelagia species). Hawaii.
Head on shot of a shrimp's eyes. Philippines.
Two juvenile jacks swim above a barrel jellyfish (Rhizostoma pulmo) at night in Truk Lagoon. Barrel jellyfish are very common in Truk Lagoon during the late summer months.
Anenome shrimp (Periclemenes sp.). Indonesia.
Chromodoris kuniei nudibranch. Indonesia.
Hyperiid amphipods riding a jellyfish (hydromedusa) at night in the open ocean.
Nudibranchs (Chromodoris willani) at night. Philippines.
Head on shot of peacock mantis shrimp (Hemisquilla ensigera californiensis) carrying a large clutch of eggs. Philippines.
Emperor shrimp or Imperial shrimp (Periclimenes imperator) lives commensally on a number of hosts, including this sea slug: Hexabranchus. Philippines.
A sea cucumber (Holothuroidea sp.) extends off the reef and releases gametes in the current.
Two fairy crabs (Lauriea siagiani). Papua New Guinea.
Reef squid (Cephalapod sp.). Palau.
Reef squid in defense posture on a blackwater dive. Solomon Islands.
A reef squid on a bonfire dive in the Solomon Islands.
Bigfin reef squid (Sepioteuthis lessoniana). Philippines.
A bright orange bristle star on a soft coral. Tonga.
A bobtail squid near the surface at night in Truk Lagoon.
Chambered nautilus (Nautilus pompilius). Papua New Guinea.
Colorful shrimp doing yoga on a blackwater dive in Truk Lagoon.
Starfish. Papua New Guinea.
A reef squid (Sepioteuthis sp.) in full irridescence. Cephalopods create this amazing camouflage using specialized color changing cells (chromatophores) and reflecting cells (iridocytes) in the skin. Indonesia.
Nudibranch (Chromodoris lochi). Philippines.
Squid larva feeding on a larval mantis shrimp. Solomon Islands.
Pram bug (Phronima sedentaria) in the barrel of salp.
Nudibranch (Nembrotha sp.) on a tunicate. Indonesia.
Nudibranch (Nembrotha kubaryana). Papua New Guinea.
An octopus larva hitches a ride on a leaf on a blackwater dive in the Solomon Islands.
Atlantic triton's trumpet (Charonia variegata) feeding on a cushion sea star (Oreaster reticulatus). Sea stars are the triton’s primary prey item. A trumpet snail paralizes its prey with an injection of toxic saliva, and then bores through the body with its strong teeth. Adult trumpets are heavily collected for their beautiful shells, which has allowed sea star populations to proliferate in recent years. Bahamas.
Octopus larva - 9.5 mm TL. Papua New Guinea.
Saron shrimp (Saron marmoratus). Saron shrimps are quite variable in color and pattern. They may have greenish, brown, or even red, purple or blue markings. Ambon, Indonesia.
Nudibranch (Flabellina sp.). Indonesia.
Yellow crinoid shrimp. Indonesia.
Portuguese man-of-war reeling in a damselfish larva at night in the open ocean.
Juvenile Hawaiian Saron shrimp (Saron marmoratus) collected as postlarva, raised in my aquarium and photographed in the studio. Hawaii.
Juvenile octopus reflects off the surface (Octopus sp.) in Papua New Guinea.
Peacock mantis shrimp (Hemisquilla ensiger). Papua New Guinea.
Juvenile saron shrimp near the surface at night in Truk Lagoon.
Soft coral crab (Hoplophrys oatesi). Indonesia.
I found a large aggregation of several hundred moon jellyfish in the lee of a small island in open ocean. Moon jellyfish aggregate under favorable (slack current) conditions to reproduce sexually. Solomon Islands.
Decorator crab. Indonesia.
A Hawaiian bobtail squid (Euprymna scolopes) on a blackwater dive off Oahu.
Collected unidentifed pelagic crustacean larva. Hawaii.
Collected sea swallow (Glaucus atlanticus), a pelagic aeolid nudibranch. Hawaii.
Odd looking donald duck shrimp (Leander plumosus) on a coral. Indonesia.
Crab close up. Indonesia.
Hyperiid amphipod frequently parasitize hydromedusa and other gelatinous animals.
Squid larva - 12.6 mm TL. Papua New Guinea.
Spiny brittle stars (Ophiothrix spiculata) became dominant on deeper California kelp beds after the 1998 El Nino and may cover nearly 100% of the bottom in some areas. They are filter feeders and require clean, oxygen-rich water, which makes them a good indicator species for a healthy ecosystem.
Collected pelagic copepod (Sapphirina sp.) - 4.5 mm TL. Hawaii.
A cuttlefish (Sepia officinalis) at dusk.
Head shot of a pelagic shrimp. Hawaii.
The rare sight of a slipper lobster puerulus on a blackwater dive off Oahu. The puerulus stage is the transitional form from pelagic larva (phyllosoma) to benthic juvenile in lobsters.
Squid (Cephalapod sp.) under rain drops. Palau.
Ctenophore gleaming in iridescence at night in the open ocean.
Two giant basket stars (Astrophyton muricatum) at night. Indonesia.
Fairy crab (Lauriea siagiani). Papua New Guinea.
Juvenile cuttlefish. Papua New Guinea.
Truk's wrecks are covered in orange sun corals that feed at night.
Reef Squid (Sepioteuthis sp.). Like all cephalopods, squid have a distinct head, bilateral symmetry, a mantle, and eight arms. There are around 300 species of squid. Indonesia.
Coral pattern. Palau.
Harlequin shrimp (Hymenocera elegans) feeding on a sea star (Linkia sp.). Indonesia.
Spider crab (Hyastenus bispinosus) on gorgonian. Fiji.
A pair of harlequin shrimps (Hymenocera elegans) feeding on a starfish (Linkia sp.) in Indonesia.
Flabellina nudibranch. Philippines.
Green-eye dancing shrimp (Cinetorhynchus sp.). Fiji.
A swimming bristle worm at night. Indonesia.
Hermissenda opalescens nudibranch in the Channel Islands.
Common octopus (Octopus vulgaris) out and about on a colorful reef. Indonesia.
Larval squid releasing ink. Papua New Guinea.
Crab megalopa collected in an egg tow. Hawaii.
Collected blue pelagic shrimp. Hawaii.
A salp (pelagic tunicate)(about 2") in the open ocean at night.
Flabellina iodinea nudibranch. California.
Barred wire coral shrimp (Pontonides sp.). Fiji.
Shrimp hitching a ride on a colonial radiolarian at night in the open ocean off Oahu, Hawaii.
A spotted spiny lobster (Panulirus guttatus). Bahamas.
Flabellina iodinea - a common nudibranch in the Channel Islands.
Crown jellyfish (Cephea cephea) off Oahu, Hawaii. Crown jellyfish have a deep groove running around the bell, giving them the crown shape from which they take their name. Hawaii.
Squat lobster on a sponge. These decapod crustaceans are not lobsters at all, but are more closely related to porcelain crabs, hermit crabs and then, more distantly, true crabs. Halmahera, Indonesia.
Bristle star and crabs on a soft coral. Papua New Guinea.
Squid (Cephalapod sp.) at night. Palau.
An emperor shrimp (Periclimenes imperator ) on a serpentine sea cucumber. Indonesia.
Flabellina nudibranch. Indonesia.
Nudibranch (Chromodoris michaeli). Philippines.
A banded coral shrimp (Stenopus hispidus) in the Bahamas.
Nudibranch (Nembrotha purpureolineata). Papua New Guinea.
Two-spot lizardfish (Synodus binotatus) with four stages of parasitic isopods. Tonga.
A close-up of the of the red pencil urchin's (Heterocentrotus mammillatus) spines and skeleton (test). Hawaii.
Emperor shrimp (Periclimenes imperator). Philippines.
Saron shrimp (Saron sp.) in a crevice. Papua New Guinea.
California spiny lobster (Panulirus interruptus). California.
Mantis shrimp larva - 65.0 mm TL. Papua New Guinea.
Humpback shrimp (Saron sp.). Fiji.
Crinoid shrimp (Hippolyte catagrapha). Philippines.
Squat lobster in a crinoid. Indonesia.
Emperor shrimp (Periclimenes imperator) lives commensally on a number of hosts, including this sea slug: Hexabranchus. Philippines.
Octopus larva - 9.5 mm TL. Papua New Guinea.
Crinoid squat lobster (Allogalathea elegans). Indonesia.
Ctenophore (about 2") feeding on a bristle worm on a blackwater dive off Oahu.
Pyrosome at night. Pyrosomes are actually free-floating colonial tunicates made up of hundreds to thousands of individuals, known as zooids. California.
Head on shot of painted spiny lobster (P. versicolor). Fiji.
Saw blade shrimp (Tozeuma armatum) carrying eggs. Philippines.
Nudibranch on a tunicate. Indonesia.
Two soft corals attached to a giant giant clam (Tridachna gigas) in Palau.
Over-under scene of jellyfish under mangroves in Palau.
A spotted cleaner shrimp (Periclimenes yucatanicus) in a pink-tipped anemone. Bahamas
A mantis shrimp (Odontodactylus scyllarus) peers out of its den. Indonesia.
Blue boxer shrimp (Stenopus tenuirostris). Indonesia.
Spotted spiny lobster (Panulirus guttatus). Bahamas.
Bird's eye view of painted spiny lobster (Panulirus vesicolor). Indonesia.
Nudibranch (Chromidoris sp.). Philippines.
Pelagic nudibranch (about 3/4") on a blackwater dive off Oahu, Hawaii
Head on shot of spiny tiger shrimp (Phyllognathia ceratophthalmus). Indonesia.
Crinoid shrimp (Hippolyte catagrapha). Philippines.
Bristle worm epitoke in the open ocean at night. An epitoke is posterior sexual part of a bristle worm (and other polychaetes) that develops from the anterior asexual part. Epitokes swim to ocean surface and release sperm and eggs during their breeding season.
Bobtail squid postures to defend itself against the bright beam of my focus light.
Juvenile squid schooling at night. Florida.
Mating nudibranchs (Nembrotha lineolata). Indonesia.
Anemone hermit crab (Dardanus pedunculatus). Indonesia.
Anenome shrimp (Periclemens sp.). Indonesia.
Juvenile banded mantis shrimp (Lysiosquilla maculata) reflecting off the surface on a blackwater dive in Palau.
Jewel anemone (Corynactis virids).
Crab on a softcoral. Papua New Guinea.
Lobster larva near settlement. Indonesia.
Brain coral (Leptoria phrygia) pattern. Bahamas.
Giant marine hermit crab (Petrochirus diogenes ) on a wreck in the Bahamas.
Crab on dendronephthya soft coral. Indonesia.
A sea elephant (Pterotrachea coronata) at night in the open ocean.
Nudibranch (Chromodoris willani). Indonesia.
Yellow spotted guard crab (Trapezia flavopunctata) collected as postlarva, raised in my aquarium and photographed in the studio. Hawaii.
California mussel and purple sea urchins in the lower intertidal zone of Santa Cruz island, California. Purple urchins usually feed on plant matter, such as kelp, but, in tough times when algae is depleted, can also use their heavy-duty teeth to grind through barnacle and mussel shells. With their ability to withstand a wide range of ocean temperatures. purple sea urchins may well be among the ocean’s ultimate survivors. Areas dominated by purple urchins are increasing throughout the Channel Islands.
Porcelain anemone crab (Neopetrolisthes maculosus) on a carpet anemone. Indonesia.
A flamboyant cuttlefish (Metasepia pfefferi) lifts off from the muck in search of food. Indonesia.
