Marine biology is the scientific study of marine life, organisms in the sea. Given that in biology many phyla, families and genera have some species that live in the sea and others that live on land, marine biology classifies species based on the environment rather than on taxonomy.
Marine mammals are aquatic mammals that rely on the ocean and other marine ecosystems for their existence. They include animals such as seals, whales, manatees, sea otters and polar bears. They do not represent a distinct taxon or systematic grouping, but rather have a polyphyletic relation due to convergent evolution, as in they do not have an immediate common ancestor. They are also unified by their reliance on the marine environment for feeding.
The Great Barrier Reef is the world's largest coral reef system composed of over 2,900 individual reefs and 900 islands stretching for over 2,300 kilometres (1,400 mi) over an area of approximately 344,400 square kilometres (133,000 sq mi). The reef is located in the Coral Sea, off the coast of Queensland, Australia. The Great Barrier Reef can be seen from outer space and is the world's biggest single structure made by living organisms. This reef structure is composed of and built by billions of tiny organisms, known as coral polyps. It supports a wide diversity of life and was selected as a World Heritage Site in 1981. CNN labelled it one of the seven natural wonders of the world. The Queensland National Trust named it a state icon of Queensland.
Isopoda is an order of crustaceans that includes woodlice and their relatives. Isopods live in the sea, in fresh water, or on land. 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. Isopods have various feeding methods: some eat dead or decaying plant and animal matter, others are grazers, or filter feeders, a few are predators, and some are internal or external parasites, mostly of fishes. Aquatic species mostly live on the seabed or bottom of freshwater bodies of water, but some taxa can swim for a short distance. Terrestrial forms move around by crawling and tend to be found in cool, moist places. Some species are able to roll themselves into a ball as a defence mechanism or to conserve moisture. There are over 10,000 species of isopod worldwide, with around 4,500 species found in marine environments, mostly on the seabed, 500 species in fresh water, and another 5,000 species on land. The order is divided into eleven suborders. The fossil record of isopods dates back to the Carboniferous period, at least 300 million years ago, when isopods lived in shallow seas. The name Isopoda is derived from the Greek roots iso- and -pod.
The Trochidae, common name top-snails or top-shells, are a taxonomic family of very small to large sea snails, marine gastropod molluscs in the clade Vetigastropoda.
Corallimorpharia is an order of marine cnidarians closely related to stony or reef building corals (Scleractinia). They are mostly tropical, with a narrow column topped with a wide oral disc. The tentacles are usually short or very short, arranged in rows radiating from the mouth. Many species occur together in large groups. In many respects, they resemble the stony corals, except for the absence of a stony skeleton.
The World Register of Marine Species (WoRMS) is a taxonomic database that aims to provide an authoritative and comprehensive list of names of marine organisms.
Cerithiopsilla is a genus of very small sea snails, marine gastropod molluscs in the family Cerithiopsidae. It was described by Thiele in 1912.
Cerithiopsilla antarctica is a species of very small sea snails, marine gastropod molluscs in the family Cerithiopsidae. It was described by Smith in 1907.
Cerithiopsilla austrina is a species of very small sea snails, marine gastropod molluscs in the family Cerithiopsidae. It was described by Hedley in 1911.
Cerithiopsilla burdwoodiana is a species of very small sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusc in the family Cerithiopsidae. This species was described by Melvill and Standen in 1912.
Cerithiopsilla cincta is a species of very small sea snails, marine gastropod molluscs in the family Cerithiopsidae. It was described by Thiele in 1912.
Cerithiopsilla gaussiana is a species of very small sea snails, marine gastropod molluscs in the family Cerithiopsidae. It was described by Egorova in 1972.
Cerithiopsilla georgiana is a species of very small sea snails, marine gastropod molluscs in the family Cerithiopsidae. It was described by Pfeffer in 1886.
Cerithiopsilla liouvillei is a species of very small sea snails, marine gastropod molluscs in the family Cerithiopsidae. It was described by Lamy in 1910.
Cerithiopsina is a genus of very small sea snails, marine gastropod molluscs in the family Cerithiopsidae. It was described by Bartsch in 1911.
Cerithiopsina adamsi is a species of very small sea snails, marine gastropod molluscs in the family Cerithiopsidae. It was described by Bartsch in 1911.
Cerithiopsina signa is a species of very small sea snails, marine gastropod molluscs in the family Cerithiopsidae. It was described by Bartsch in 1921.
Corallimorphus niwa is a species of corals in the genus Corallimorphus. It was classified by Fautin in 2011. Corallimorphus niwa lives in marine habitats.
