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British Invertebrates - marine

Species 1 - 45 of 45

Actinia equina (Beadlet anemone)
The beadlet anemone is the most familiar sea anemone in Britain. When disturbed or exposed to air at low tide it appears... More	20 Images	4 Videos

Alcyonium digitatum (Dead man's fingers)
Dead man's fingers is a colonial soft coral that forms thick, fleshy and irregular masses, which are often finger-like... More	11 Images	3 Videos

Amphianthus dohrnii (Sea-fan anemone)
This small anemone is pink, orange, red or buff-coloured with streaks of white, and has up to around 80 irregularly arranged small... More	4 Images	0 Videos

Archidoris pseudoargus (Sea lemon)
The sea lemon, Archidoris pseudoargus (also known as Archidoris tuberculata in much of Europe) is a common sea slug around Britain.... More	6 Images	1 Video

Arenicola marina (Lugworm)
The presence of this lugworm can be detected by the characteristic signs of one of its U or J-shaped burrows; depressions are... More	7 Images	3 Videos

Asterias rubens (Common starfish)
The common starfish has 5 arms (although individuals may occasionally have just 4 or as many as 6). The colour varies from red... More	10 Images	5 Videos

Atrina fragilis (Fan mussel)
Growing to an impressive 48 cm in length, the fan mussel (Atrina fragilis) is one of the largest of the bivalve molluscs found... More	10 Images	1 Video

Aurelia aurita (Common jellyfish)
This is the most common jellyfish on British shores. The body is a saucer shaped 'bell', which is colourless except for 4 obvious... More	8 Images	9 Videos

Botryllus schlosseri (Star ascidian)
The star ascidian is a colonial sea-squirt. The individual members of the colony (known as zooids) are embedded in a jelly-like... More	5 Images	2 Videos

Buccinum undatum (Common whelk)
This large, common whelk has a stout, yellowish-brown shell with lighter and darker spiral areas. It has 7-8 whorls, and a large... More	8 Images	3 Videos

Cancer pagurus (Edible crab)
The common and familiar edible crab is easily identified by its large black-tipped toothed pincers and characteristic... More	12 Images	2 Videos

Carcinus maenas (Common shore crab)
The shore crab is one of the commonest crabs on the shore, and anyone who has gone rock-pooling is likely to have encountered one.... More	11 Images	5 Videos

Cerastoderma edule (Common cockle)
This well-known edible cockle has a solid shell, consisting of two valves, which feature prominent ribs and concentric... More	7 Images	2 Videos

Chrysaora hysoscella (Compass jellyfish)
The compass jellyfish has a saucer-shaped bell, with 32 semi-circular lobes around the fringe, each one with a brown spot. On the... More	5 Images	0 Videos

Corynactis viridis (Jewel anemone)
The jewel anemone is so-called because of its spectacular colouration. Individuals may be bright green, orange, red, pink or white... More	10 Images	2 Videos

Corystes cassivelaunus (Masked crab)
The masked crab (also known as the sand crab) has an elongated carapace, which is reddish brown to yellow in colour, and sometimes... More	4 Images	1 Video

Crangon crangon (Common shrimp)
The common shrimp, also known as the brown shrimp, is cryptically coloured; it is brown and covered with tiny flecks. Although most... More	5 Images	3 Videos

Echinus esculentus (Edible sea urchin)
The edible or common sea urchin has a large, rounded 'shell', which is actually an external skeleton, correctly called... More	8 Images	2 Videos

Edwardsia ivelli (Ivell's sea anemone)
A simple animal, the sea anemone is made up of a column with a mouth, used to take in food and expel waste, and several tentacles.... More	1 Image	0 Videos

Eledone cirrhosa (Curled octopus)
The cephalopods (meaning 'head-footed'), a group of molluscs that contain the octopuses, squid and cuttlefish, are probably the... More	10 Images	2 Videos

Ensis ensis (Razor shell)
This razor shell is a common, burrowing mollusc, which has an elongated fragile and narrow shell shaped like a cut-throat razor... More	3 Images	0 Videos

Eunicella verrucosa (Pink sea fan)
Pink sea fans are formed from a colony of tiny polyps; they may be a deep pink to white in colour, and attach to the substrate with... More	6 Images	2 Videos

Funiculina quadrangularis (Tall sea pen)
Sea pens are colonial organisms that belong to the same group as corals and sea anemones. Each animal comprises of a colony... More	4 Images	0 Videos

Homarus gammarus (Common lobster)
The common lobster is a very large and commercially important species. The upper surface is dark blue in colour with yellowish... More	6 Images	5 Videos

Hydrobia ulvae (Laver spire shell)
The laver spire snail, also known as the mudsnail, has a small, spiralling shell, which is brown to yellow in colour. The snail... More	1 Image	3 Videos

Lepas anatifera (Goose barnacle)
Goose barnacles gave rise to one of the strangest of animal beliefs. The heart-shaped shell, or capitulum, is a chalky-white... More	7 Images	0 Videos

Leptopsammia pruvoti (Sunset cup coral)
The slow-growing and long-lived sunset cup coral has a porous skeleton about the size of a thimble. The polyps are similar... More	6 Images	1 Video

Ligia oceanica (Sea slater)
The common sea slater is a sea-shore relative of woodlice that can grow up to 3 cm in length. It has a flattened, oval-shaped body... More	8 Images	0 Videos

Littorina littorea (Edible periwinkle)
Periwinkles are a large family of gastropod molluscs found on the shore. The edible periwinkle is perhaps the best known species... More	8 Images	2 Videos

Littorina obtusata (Flat periwinkle)
Periwinkles are a large family of gastropod molluscs found on the shore. The flat periwinkle is so-called because the spire of the... More	5 Images	1 Video

Mytilus edulis (Common mussel)
The common mussel has a roughly triangular shell, which is bluish, purplish or brown in colour and covered with a black outer... More	10 Images	5 Videos

Necora puber (Velvet swimming crab)
The fast-moving velvet swimming crab has a flattened carapace, which is wider than it is long. The upper surface is blue but has... More	17 Images	2 Videos

Nymphon gracile (Sea-spider)
The sea-spiders, or pycogonids, are an unusual group of marine arthropods, which are completely unrelated to terrestrial spiders... More	2 Images	1 Video

Octopus vulgaris (Common octopus)
The cephalopods (meaning ‘head-footed) are a group of molluscs that contain the octopuses, squid and cuttlefish, and are probably... More	9 Images	3 Videos

Ophiothrix fragilis (Common brittlestar)
Like all brittlestars, the common brittlestar has five long, slender arms, which radiate out from a central disc. The mouth... More	7 Images	1 Video

Ostrea edulis (Native oyster)
The native oyster is a bivalve mollusc, which means ‘two shells', and is rough, scaly and yellowish-grey in colour. Each valve... More	3 Images	0 Videos

Pagurus bernhardus (Common hermit crab)
Despite the common name, hermit crabs are related more closely to lobsters than to crabs. They lack a hard carapace, and adopt the... More	7 Images	4 Videos

Palaemon serratus (Common prawn)
The common prawn is a well-known swimming crustacean, which is pinkish-brown in colour and features reddish spots and lines. The... More	9 Images	3 Videos

Patella vulgata (Common limpet)
The common limpet is a well-known seashore species. It has a conical shell, the outer surface of which is greyish-white. Shells... More	6 Images	3 Videos

Pleurobrachia pileus (Sea gooseberry)
Members of the phylum Ctenophora are known as sea-gooseberries or comb-jellies, and are startlingly beautiful marine invertebrates.... More	4 Images	3 Videos

Scrobicularia plana (Peppery furrow shell)
The peppery furrow shell is a bivalve mollusc with a thin, flattened, rounded shell. The outer surface of the shell may be white... More	4 Images	1 Video

Semibalanus balanoides (Acorn barnacle)
Barnacles are well-known intertidal organisms. They were not firmly accepted to be crustaceans until the 1830s; before this time... More	7 Images	0 Videos

Sepia officinalis (Common cuttlefish)
The cephalopods (meaning 'head-footed'), a group of molluscs containing the octopuses, squid and cuttlefish, are probably the most... More	12 Images	8 Videos

Talitrus saltator (Sand hopper)
Sand-hoppers are so called because of their ability to leap when disturbed; they do so by tucking in the tail, and rapidly flicking... More	1 Image	1 Video

Trivia monacha (European cowrie)
The European or spotted cowrie is a marine mollusc that has an egg-shaped glossy shell featuring many transverse ridges with a long... More	7 Images	2 Videos

Species 1 - 45 of 45

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