The term megadiverse country refers to any one of a group of nations that harbor the majority of Earth's species and high numbers of endemic species. Conservation International identified 17 megadiverse countries in 1998. Many of them are located in, or partially in, tropical or subtropical regions.
Heterodonta is a taxonomic subclass of saltwater clams, marine bivalve molluscs. This subclass includes the edible clams, the cockles and the Venus clams.
Cone snails, cone shells, or cones are a large group of small- to large-sized extremely venomous predatory sea snails, marine gastropod molluscs.
Campanulariidae is a family of animals in the phylum Cnidaria, or stinging-celled animals. Campanulariidae is composed entirely of hydroids, a Greek term meaning "water animals" applied to the plant-like polyp colonies of the class Hydrozoa. All species of the Campanulariidae are aquatic in habitat, primarily inhabiting coastal regions and tidal pools.
Atlanta is a genus of pelagic marine gastropod molluscs in the family Atlantidae. They are sometimes called heteropods.
The slender whiting is a poorly known species of inshore marine fish of the smelt whiting family, Sillaginidae that has a distribution limited to the Persian Gulf only. The Slender whiting, like most sillaginids requires careful study to determine its identity, with ray and vertebrae counts as well as swim bladder morphology distinguishing features. This inshore species of fish is commonly taken by fishermen using beach seines and is sold fresh in local markets.
The common starfish, common sea star or sugar starfish is the most common and familiar starfish in the north-east Atlantic. Belonging to the family Asteriidae, it has five arms and usually grows to between 10–30 cm across, although larger specimens are known. The common starfish is usually orange or brownish in color, and sometimes violet; specimens found in deeper waters are pale. The common starfish is found on rocky and gravelly substrates where it feeds on mollusks and other benthic invertebrates.
Hydroidolina is a subclass of hydrozoans in the phylum Cnidaria. It contains the bulk of the paraphyletic "Hydroida" which were one of the main groupings of the class Hydrozoa in older classifications and were placed at order rank. Hydroidolina also includes, however, the highly advanced colonial jellies of Siphonophora, which were not included in the "Hydroida".
Leptothecata, or thecate hydroids, are an order of hydrozoans in the phylum Cnidaria. Their closest living relatives are the athecate hydroids which are similar enough to have always been considered closely related, and the very apomorphic Siphonophora which were placed outside the "Hydroida". Given that there are no firm rules for synonymy for high-ranked taxa, alternative names like Leptomedusa, Thecaphora or Thecata, with or without the ending emended to "-ae", are also often used for Leptothecata.
Conica are a cnidarian suborder of the Leptomedusae. They make up the bulk of their order; their internal relationships are not well resolved, and most of the roughly 30 families are not yet assigned to a superfamily.
Plumularioidea is a superfamily of hydrozoans in the order Leptothecata.
The blacklip abalone, Haliotis rubra, is an Australian species of large, edible sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Haliotidae, the abalones.
Choristella is a genus of sea snails, marine gastropod mollusks in the family Choristellidae.
Tetraplatia is a genus of hydrozoans in the order Narcomedusae. It is the sole genus in the monotypic family Tetraplatidae.
Africonus is a subgenus of sea snails, marine gastropod mollusks in the genus Conus, family Conidae, the cone snails and their allies.
Diploria is a monotypic genus of massive reef building stony corals in the family Mussidae. It is represented by a single species, Diploria labyrinthiformis, commonly known as grooved brain coral and is found in the western Atlantic Ocean and Caribbean Sea. It has a familiar, maze-like appearance.
Ctenella is a monotypic genus of stony coral in the family Euphylliidae. It is represented by a single species, Ctenella chagius. These corals are massive in size with meandering valleys between the calyces which have solid, non-porous walls and fine, evenly spaced, solid septae. They are found in the Indian Ocean, Red Sea and Mediterranean Sea. It forms solid, smooth hemispherical domes and is found in the Indian Ocean in the vicinity of the Chagos Archipelago.
Pycnotheca mirabilis, The feathery hydroid, is a colonial hydroid in the family Kirchenpaueriidae. Feathery hydroids are often white and grow in crowded colonies resembling upright feathers. The stems may grow to 3 cm in total height. The reproductive bodies are found at the base of the stems and resemble beehives.
Halicornopsis is a genus of cnidarians belonging to the family Kirchenpaueriidae.
Kirchenpaueria is a genus of cnidarians belonging to the family Kirchenpaueriidae.
