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The sea pen, aka sea pansies, are a cosmopolitan species that can be found in oceans all over the world. These peculiar creatures spend their lives partially dug into the substrate with their feather-like proboscis sticking out and gathering food. These creatures are mostly undocumented with the IUCN. However, the […]

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This article was originally published on Critter Science.

Copepods are a group of small crustaceans found in practically every freshwater and saltwater habitat in the world, including Antarctica. Some species are planktonic, while others are benthic (live on the ocean floor). While still more thrive in damp or wet soil. Due to their abundance, these critters are not […]

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This article was originally published on Critter Science.

The spot prawn is a type of prawn, aka large shrimp, that hails from the Pacific Northwest. Prawns are crustaceans that are related to crabs and lobsters. These particular crustaceans prefer muddy, rocky, and sandy bottoms and habitats near corals and sponges. They can be found at depths of up […]

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This article was originally published on Critter Science.

Found in oceans, lakes, ponds, rivers, and streams the world over, zooplankton are tiny, living creatures that are a type of plankton. There are literally hundreds of thousands of creatures that can be called zooplankton. Even newly hatched jellyfish fall into this category. They are typically found on the surface […]

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This article was originally published on Critter Science.

The fin whale is the second largest creature on the planet, after the blue whale. There are 2 known subspecies; the northern and the southern. Fin whales prefer temperate and polar waters. These gentle giants are part of the baleen family of whales that spend their days filter feeding tiny […]

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This article was originally published on Critter Science.

Belonging to the family of whales known as baleen whales, the sei whale can be found in oceans all over the world except tropical and polar regions. There are 2 known subspecies of sei whales; the northern and the southern. Sadly, due to intensive hunting of these magnificent beasts, their […]

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This article was originally published on Critter Science.

Whales are a critical component to the earth’s oceans. The southern right whale is no exception. These giants, like all other baleen whales, aid in the bloom of phytoplankton and krill when they (believe it or not) poop. Their feces is fed upon by phytoplankton which then blooms to then […]

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This article was originally published on Critter Science.

The megamouth shark is the 3rd largest shark in the world, after the whale shark and the basking shark. Their mouth can be up to 4 feet across! That’s a quarter of their body length. They can be found in the Atlantic, Indian, and Pacific Oceans at depths of up […]

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This article was originally published on Critter Science.

The basking shark is the second largest known fish in the ocean, after the whale shark. These gentle giants have lots of teeth but instead choose to eat plankton. They can be found in temperate waters around the world, slowly swimming about, peacefully scooping up plankton. These sharks get their […]

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This article was originally published on Critter Science.

Found in all the world’s oceans and especially abundant in Antarctica’s surrounding waters it’s krill. These tiny critters are only the size of your pinky finger but are found in such great masses around Antarctica that they can be seen from space. They are recognized as a keystone species as […]

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