Marine mammals are mammals that rely on marine (saltwater) ecosystems for their existence. They include animals such as cetaceans, pinnipeds, sirenians, sea otters and polar bears. They are an informal group, unified only by their reliance on marine environments for feeding and survival.
Isopoda is an order of crustacean, which includes woodlice and their relatives. Members of this group are called Isopods and include both terrestrial and aquatic species. All have rigid, segmented exoskeletons, two pairs of antennae, seven pairs of jointed limbs on the thorax, and five pairs of branching appendages on the abdomen that are used in respiration. Females brood their young in a pouch under their thorax.
A gribble /ˈgɹɪbəl/ is any of about 56 species of marine isopod from the family Limnoriidae. They are mostly pale white and small crustaceans, although Limnoria stephenseni from subantarctic waters can reach 10 mm (0.4 in).
The blacktailed spurdog is a dogfish, a member of the family Squalidae, found around New Caledonia in the central Pacific Ocean, at depths from 320 to 320 m. Its length is up to 75 cm.
Sphaeromatidae is a family of isopods, often encountered on rocky shores and in shelf waters in temperate zones. The family includes almost 100 genera and 619 known marine species. Within these genera, there are groups that share distinctive morphologies; further research may reclassify these genus-groups as separate families.
Bertram's weaver, sometimes called Bertrand's weaver, is a species of bird in the family Ploceidae. It is found in Malawi, Mozambique, Tanzania, and Zambia.
The Australian spotted mackerel is a species of fish in the family Scombridae. Common fork length ranges between 50 and 80 cm. Specimens have been recorded at up to 104 cm in length, and weighing up to 10.2 kg. It is found in the western Pacific, along the northern coast of Australia, from the Abrolhos Islands region of Western Australia to Coffs Harbour and Kempsey in central New South Wales. It is also found in southern Papua New Guinea from Kerema to Port Moresby. It feeds largely on fishes, particularly anchovies and sardines, with smaller quantities of shrimps and squids. It is sometimes confused with Japanese Spanish mackerel, S. niphonius. Conservation status of the species has been evaluated as Near Threatened by the IUCN. This species was described in 1980 and was previously confused with the Japanese Spanish mackerel of the north western Pacific but S. munroi has a different visceral structure, more vertebrae and fewer gill rakers.
Cymothoida is the name of a suborder of isopod crustaceans with a mostly carnivorous or parasitic lifestyle. It contains more than 2,700 described species in four superfamilies. Members of the suborder are characterised by their specialised mouthparts which include a mandible with a tooth-like process which is adapted for cutting or slicing.
Serolidae is a family of isopod crustaceans, containing the following genera :
The Aegidae are a family of isopod crustaceans. The adults are temporary parasites of fish, feeding on their hosts' blood before dropping off to digest the meal. They differ from members of the family Cirolanidae in having only three pairs of hook-like pereiopods, whereas in Cirolanidae all seven pairs of pereiopods are hooked. The family was first described by Adam White in 1850.
Copelatus bertrandi is a species of diving beetle. It is part of the genus Copelatus in the subfamily Copelatinae of the family Dytiscidae. It was described by Bilardo & Rocchi in 1996.
Celaenorrhinus aegiochus is a species of butterfly in the family Hesperiidae. It is found from Costa Rica to Panama and Colombia.
Aega is a genus of isopods in the family Aegidae, containing the following species:
Savatieria is a genus of sea snails, marine gastropod mollusks in the family Buccinidae.
Palaospeum is a genus of minute freshwater snails with an operculum, aquatic gastropod molluscs or micromolluscs in the family Moitessieriidae.
Rocinela is a genus of isopods in the family Aegidae, and was first described in 1818 by William Elford Leach. The type species is Rocinela danmoniensis Leach, 1818.
Rocinela kapala is a species of isopod in the family Aegidae, and was first described in 1988 by Niel L. Bruce. The species was first described in detail as R. oculata. The species is named for the FRV Kapala, the vessel from which the holotype was collected at a depth of 450 metres.
Aegiochus is a genus of isopods in the family Aegidae, first described in 1885 by Carl Bovallius. The type species is Aega ventrosa.
Aegiochus piihuka is a species of isopod in the family Aegidae, and was first described in 2009 by Niel L. Bruce. The species epithet, piihuka, is a Mäori word meaning hook, and refers to the hooked anterior legs.
