Sturgeon

Image: david.torcivia via Flickr

Sturgeon! With a T! Don't mix him up with a surgeon because this guy just isn't cut out for heart surgery; he has no proper backbone, no hands and I swear he needs glasses. Does he remind anyone else of Mole from The Wind in the Willows?

Hooded Tickspider

Image: Marshal Hedin

Armed with a remarkably thick exoskeleton and a host of other protective devises, Hooded Tickspider must surely be the most paranoid of all arachnids.

Basket Star

Image: Nick Hobgood

What on Earth is going on here? There must be a million creatures in there! Or at least one of those crazy corals that are actually composed of millions of creatures.

Nope. This is one, solitary Basket Star. She looks hungry!

Caecilian

Image: teague_o via Flickr

It's that time again, everyone! When we sit back and relax, kick off our shoes and put our feet up, only to realise we could be doing so much more.

Arms and legs... aren't they mostly just stressful? Are they not impediments to true peace of mind? Don't all relaxation techniques centre on forgetting those tyrant limbs and realising your inner snake?

That's what Caecilians seem to think!

Red Paper Lantern Jellyfish

It's a beautiful red paper lantern! It comes from the sea but don't worry, it has a protective covering so it won't get wet.

Port Jackson Shark

Image: Wikipedia

Whoa! These teeth have a lot of explaining to do! I sure hope they have a good excuse.

The Dino's Toes

Image: marttj via Flickr

It doesn't matter how pretty a bird is. how vibrant the colours, how flowing the feathers, how sweet the song. If you take a look at their feet you will see scales and claws.

Garden Centipede

Image: Wikipedia

It looks like a centipede.

But softy soft names like
"Pseudocentipede",
"Garden Centipede" and
"Glasshouse Symphylan"
should give you a clue.

It eats like a millipede.

And yet it's neither.

Welcome to the secret underbelly of Myripoda!

Peacock Flounder

Image: nashworld via Flickr

How can a fish gone so horribly wrong do so remarkably well?

An Amazingly Hairy Velvet Mite

Image: ~Squil~ via Flickr

Whoa! Who invited Robinson Crusoe to the party? This Velvet Mite isn't velvet at all! It's more like one of those shaggy, wool rugs. Looks really difficult to keep clean, too.

It was pictured in south east Australia and that's the sum total of what I know about it. Aside from the fact that I still want to snuggle and wuggle.

A Yellow Polka Dot Velvet Mite

Image: teejaybee via Flickr

It's a yellow polka dot Velvet Mite! And it has unusually chunky legs. I know absolutely nothing else about it!

I can only assume it's part of some kind of travelling circus, setting up tent with performing fleas and the Amazing Bearded Ant to bring delight and wonder among watching arthropods. You know when crickets chirp at night? It's a round of applause! Clearly.

Giant Red Velvet Mite

Image: Ted McCrae

Awwww! Look at the cuddly-wuddly little teddy bear! Don't you just want to get in there and snuggle and wuggle? I know I do!

Sand Mason Worm

Image: Dan Marsh

They construct their own homes! Always nice to see a worm who's good with his... hands?

Terrible Hairy Fly

Male. Hairy, because he's too nasty looking to be fluffy.

This little abomination is not something you'd want to see frantically trying to crawl out of your bath. Thankfully they live in a tiny habitat more terrible than even the most terrible of teenage bedrooms. I think so, anyway. Even though the Guinness Book of Records has a lot of weird stuff, it turns out they don't have a 'terrible teenage bedroom' record. So I can't be completely sure.

Pygmy Seahorse

Image: Stephen Childs via Flickr
Bargibanti's Pygmy Seahorse

Pygmy Seahorses! Not only are they tiny, they are a blessing in expert disguise.