The Portuguese Man O’ War, or Portuguese Man of War, is a dangerous species of a marine cnidarian. Its numerous tentacles remain capable of delivering extremely painful stings. The animal is often mistaken for the common jellyfish but the Portuguese Man O’ War is actually a siphonophore. Their bodies consist of numerous individual zooids (an 18th-century single […]
Flamingo Tongue Snail
The Flamingo Tongue Snail is a brilliantly colored, small species of sea snail. They represent a marine gastropod mollusk and remain the most common of the numerous types of sea snail native to their habitat range. The Flamingo Tongue Snail primarily lives in the warmer waters of the western Atlantic Ocean. This extends from the […]
St Helena Gumwood
The St Helena Gumwood forms one of the ten rarest species of tree on the planet, and remains endemic only to the island of St Helena, in the South Atlantic Ocean. Even there the St Helena Gumwood grows in only a specific habitat range. At one time, it represented one of the most abundant species on […]
Bioluminescent Octopus
The Bioluminescent Octopus, or Stauroteuthis syrtensis, is a fascinating deep-sea species that has been relatively little studied. Some have been described on the basis of a single, poorly preserved specimen, and this makes deducing their relationships difficult. The length of the mantle of Stauroteuthis syrtensis is about 2 to 4 in (5-10 cm), and its width about 1.6 in (4 cm). The […]
Triple Divide Peak
Triple Divide Peak Facts To begin with, the slopes of Triple Divide Peak play an important role in the hydrologic cycle of North America. That’s because from this location rain or melting snow can potentially flow into either of three oceans. This makes this geological marvel one of only three such sites in the world. […]
Barndoor Skate
Barndoor Skate Facts The Barndoor Skate did not have the distinction as a separate species until 1898. It is one of the largest known skates found in any ocean. As recently as the early 1990’s, this creature nearly became another one of the earth’s species to vanish forever, as a result of commercial fishing. Their […]
Jawfish
The Jawfish is a family of unique fish classified within the order Perciformes. All known types of Jawfish are endemic to the warmest portions of the Pacific Ocean, Atlantic Ocean, and the Indian Ocean. Within this region, they also inhabit a specific range and reside in the sandy substrate of the ocean floor but rarely live […]
Reynisfjara Beach
Without a doubt, Reynisfjara Beach ranks as one of the most unusual beaches in the world, and also one of the most isolated known to man. Its isolation helps this geological wonder to remain relatively pristine. Very few tourists choose to brave the environmental conditions of its location, so tourism stays rather limited. We have been there […]
Sea Pig
The Sea Pig is the common name of a genus of deep-sea holothurian echinoderms which obviously resemble a pig. However, not all species bear this resemblance. Members of this genus have also evolved oversized tube feet, giving them the appearance of actual legs. Depending upon the species, the Sea Pig will possess between 5-7 pairs of […]
Fernando de Noronha
Fernando de Noronha is a small archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean and lies roughly 220 mi (354 km) off the coast of Brazil, in South America. The archipelago consists of 21 islands and islets. Additionally, the principal island has an area of 7.1 sq mi (18.4 sq. km). The total area of all islands and islets […]