This is Urechis unicinctus, a species of marine spoon worm. It is also know as the fat innkeeper worm or (I bet you'll never guess why) the penis fish. They live in burrows of sand and mud and are commonly eaten raw with salt and sesame oil in Korea and parts of Japan.

This is a butterfly gurnard fish. They have a large bony head and a bony rostrum on the snout with a very small median notch with tiny spines.  They are sandy with reddish bands and blotches and often turn red on capture.  The greenish pectoral fins are round with bright blue spots and margins, and a roundish black blotch with a bright blue margin and scattered blue spots inside.

The kiwi is a flightless bird found only in New Zealand. They're around the size of a chicken, and lay the largest eggs in relation to their body size of any bird in the world. Their eggs can be up to 20% of the females body weight - the equivalent of a 130 pound woman giving birth to a 26 pound baby.

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Just one


A scanning electron microscope image of a single red blood cell on the tip of a needle.

This bird, known as the elephant bird, went extinct sometime in the 17th century as a result of human activity. Although flightless, the birds were widespread, inhabiting the northern to the southern tip of Madagascar.

Not only are they three times the size of an ostrich, they are also known for their massive egg. These fossils are so rare that one is currently being auctioned and is expecting to go for an upwards cost of $40 000..

This is Peanut the turtle, shortly after being found in Missouri in 1993. She was taken to to a zoo in St. Louis where the six-pack ring was removed.

It seems that she was trapped in the plastic ring as a young turtle and was unable to free herself. Subsequently, her shell moulded itself to the plastic ring and she grew in the strange shape you see here.

Unfortunately the damage is permanent, but peanut is expected to live a long life and today she serves as a mascot for the fight against beach littering.

Please, always remember to clean up after yourself at the beach. ...

Genetic modification is one of the most controversial topics in all of modern science and with the advancement of synthetic biology over the last decade or so it is sure to become even more of a talking point in the future. Genetic modification is a subject that most people seem to have an opinion on, but I must say that a great deal of those opinions are built upon misconceptions or influenced by the charm of organic propaganda. I cant help but find such misunderstandings quite ironic, for example, the man who strongly opposes the consumption of genetically modified foods, yet requires the injection of insulin produced via genetically modified micro-organisms to keep his diabetes under control, to name just one such example. It seems that ...

This is the larva of the Hemeroplanes triptolemus moth. In its larval form it is capable of expanding its anterior body segments to give it the appearance of a snake, complete with simulated eyes. It's mimicry extends even to the point where it will harmlessly strike at potential predators.