Physical World/Invertebrates

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Revision as of 17:27, 30 June 2021 by QRNeditor (talk | contribs) (Added images)
Box jellyfish.jpg
Box jellyfish


class Cubozoa

Distinguished by their cube-shaped medusae. Some species of box jellyfish produce extremely potent venom

Found in the Indo-Pacific region, notably off the coast of Australia

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Portuguese man o’ war


hysalia physalis

Not a common jellyfish but a colony of specialized minute individuals called zooids

Name comes from the supposed resemblance to the Portuguese version of an armed sailing ship at full sail

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Crown-of-thorns starfish


Acanthaster planci

The adult crown-of-thorns is a carnivorous predator that usually preys on reef coral polyps

Most common on the Great Barrier Reef

Japanese spider crab.jpg
Japanese spider crab


Macrocheira kaempferi

It has the greatest leg span of any arthropod, reaching 3.8 m (12 ft) from claw to claw. The whole crab can weigh up to 19 kilograms (42 lb) – second only to the American lobster among all living arthropod species

Christmas Island red crab.jpg
Christmas Island red crab


Gecarcoidea natalis

Endemic to Christmas Island and the Cocos (Keeling) Islands in the Indian Ocean

Well known for their annual mass migration to the sea to lay their eggs in the ocean

Fiddler crab.jpg
Fiddler crab


genus Uca

Well known for their sexually dimorphic claws; the males’ major claw is much larger than the minor claw while the females’ claws are both the same size

Horseshoe crab.jpg
Horseshoe crab


family Limulidae


Living fossils. The earliest horseshoe crab fossils are from 450 million years ago

Do not have haemoglobin in their blood, but instead use haemocyanin to carry oxygen. Because of the copper present in haemocyanin, their blood is blue

Vampire squid.jpg
Vampire squid


Vampyroteuthis infernalis

Name means "vampire squid of Hell"


The animal's dark colour, cloak-like webbing, and red eyes give the vampire squid its name — it does not feed on blood

Nautilus


family Nautilidae


Living fossils


The nautilus shell presents one of the finest natural examples of a logarithmic spiral


Swims using jet propulsion

Sea cucumber


class Holothuroidea

Have a leathery skin and an elongated body containing a single, branched gonad. Sea cucumbers are found on the sea floor worldwide and are used in Chinese cuisine

Tardigrade.jpg
Tardigrade


Phylum Tardigrada

Also known as water bear or moss piglet

Tardigrades are notable for being perhaps the most durable known organisms, able to survive extreme conditions. They are 0.5 mm long when fully grown

Queen Alexandra’s birdwing


Ornithoptera alexandrae

The largest butterfly in the world, with females reaching wingspans of 25 cm (9.8 inches). Only found  in Papua New Guinea


Named in honour of Alexandra of Denmark

Monarch butterfly


Danaus plexippus

Milkweed butterfly known for its annual late-summer/autumn migration from the United States and southern Canada to Mexico covering thousands of miles

Atlas moth


Attacus atlas


Considered the largest moths in the world in terms of total wing surface area, but recent sources confer this title upon the Hercules Moth


Common across the Malay archipelago

Bullet ant


Paraponera clavata

Named on account of its powerful and potent sting due to its venom. The pain caused by the sting is ranked as the most painful according to the Schmidt sting pain index


distributed throughout Central America and South America

Cuckoo bee


subfamily Nomadinae


Refers to a number of bees which have evolved the kleptoparasitic behaviour of laying their eggs in the nests of other bees. Often wasp-like in appearance

Periodical cicada


genus Magicicada

After 13 or 17 years, mature cicada nymphs emerge at any given locality, synchronously and in tremendous numbers. After mating and egg laying, the adult cicadas are gone for another 13 or 17 years

Goliath beetle


family Scarabaeidae


Among the largest insects on Earth. Males can be 110 mm (4.3 in) in length


Prominent markings common to all of the Goliathus species are the sharply contrasting black vertical stripes on the thoracic shield

Dung beetle


family Scarabaeidae


A dung beetle can bury dung 250 times heavier than itself in one night


Several species of the dung beetle, most notably the species Scarabaeus sacer, enjoyed a sacred status among the ancient Egyptians

Stag beetle


family Lucanidae


Name is derived from the large and distinctive mandibles found on the males of most species, which resemble the antlers of stags


The species Lucanus cervus is the largest terrestrial insect in Europe

Sydney funnel-web spider


Atrax robustus

If has a bite capable of causing serious injury or death in humans if left untreated


A funnel-web's burrow characteristically has irregular silk trip-lines radiating from the entrance

Redback spider


Latrodectus hasseltii

Venomous spider indigenous to Australia. The adult female is easily recognised by a prominent red stripe on the upper side of her abdomen and an hourglass-shaped red/orange streak on the underside. May be found on the underside of toilet seats

Black widow spider


Latrodectus mactans

Well known for the distinctive black and red coloring of the female of the species that will occasionally eat her mate after reproduction. The species is native to North America. The venom is seldom fatal to humans

False widow spider


genus Steatoda

Many spiders of the genus Steatoda are often mistaken for widow spiders (Latrodectus); however Steatoda are significantly less harmful to humans