Critter of the Month

Critter of the Month gives a peek into the lives of Puget Sound’s least-known inhabitants – mud-dwelling invertebrates collected by the Marine Sediment Monitoring Team. Each month we feature a different species or group, giving information on identification, habitat, and life history.
Critter of the Month gives a peek into the lives of Puget Sound’s least-known inhabitants – mud-dwelling invertebrates collected by the Marine Sediment Monitoring Team. Each month we feature a different species or group, giving information on identification, habitat, and life history.

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The "unicorn" shrimp is pure magic
Nebalia pugettensis is a tiny crustacean that lives on the sea floor, with a horn-like rostrum and leg-like appendages that function as lungs.
The brittle stars embody nature's fragility...and resilience
The brittle stars truly are in a class all their own.
All you need is mud! The sea mouse is muddy but mighty
The sea mouse may be brown and fuzzy, but that is about all it shares with its mammalian namesake. Believe it or not, the sea mouse is actually a marine segmented worm, or polychaete.
Going nuts over the peanut worms
Peanut worms belong to the phylum Sipuncula, meaning "little tube or siphon." They can retract their bodies into a tubular trunk like a balled up pair of socks.
What the shell? The tusk shells are in a class all their own
Tusk shells belong to the Class Scaphopoda, meaning boat foot. In contrast to a real elephant's ivory tusk, a scaphopod's conical shell is open on both ends.
Things that go bump in the night: the sea spiders look a fright
Sea spiders have segmented bodies, hard exoskeletons, and long, thin legs like land spiders, but they are not closely related.
Get ready to "fall" for the orange sea pen
The orange sea pen resembles a colorful autumn tree waving in the breeze of moving water currents.
A moment in the sun for the common sun star
With its bright sun-like appearance, the common sun star is one of the more beautiful creatures in Puget Sound.
I scream, you scream, we all scream for ice cream cone worms
Ice cream cone worms are easily recognized by their distinct cone-shaped tubes that can be up to two inches long.
Flora or fauna? The tube-dwelling anemone lights up the Sound with its "blooms"
Meet the tube-dwelling anemone, a delicate blossom at the bottom of Puget Sound.