6种意想不到的美丽的海洋生物

6种意想不到的美丽的海洋生物

The shrimp mantis is neither shrimp nor mantis, but its name comes from its close resemblance to a praying mantis and, well, shrimp. (Photo: Jens Petersen [CC SA 3.0]/Wikimedia Commons)

You've likely oohed and ahhed at playful dolphins and majestic blue whales, but when's the last time you gave a shout-out to the humble snail or mollusk? This summer, a lobsterman in Maine took the Internet by storm (pun intended) when he posted a 1 in 100 million catch: a "cotton candy" lobster. The purple, pink, and blue crustacean practically sparkled in its prettiness, and got us wondering: what other overlooked beauties might lurk below the sea?

你可能会对顽皮的海豚和威武的蓝鲸啧啧称奇，但你最后一次对不起眼的蜗牛或软体动物大喊大叫是什么时候?今年夏天，缅因州的一名捕虾人在网上走红(双关语)，他发布了一条一亿分之一的捕获量:一只“棉花糖”龙虾。这种紫色、粉红色和蓝色的甲壳类动物在美丽的外表下闪闪发光，这使我们不禁要问:还有什么其他被忽视的美丽的东西可能潜伏在海底呢?

Nudibranch

裸鳃亚目动物

Nembrotha cristata, a species of a colorful sea slug, pictured at Lekuan II dive site, Bunaken Marine National Park, North Sulawesi, Indonesia. (Photo: Chriswan Sungkono [CC SA 3.0]/Wikimedia Commons)

Nudibranchs are probably better known by their street name, sea slugs. These soft-bodied marine mollusks include more than 3,000 species and live in seas all over the world. They're anything but sluggish, though; these gastropods are hermaphroditic and carnivorous, and some are even cannibals.

裸鳃海蛞蝓可能更广为人知。这些软体软体动物包括超过3000种，生活在世界各地的海洋中。不过，它们一点也不迟缓;这些腹足动物是雌雄同体的食肉动物，有些甚至是食人族。

Coconut octopus

椰子章鱼

The coconut octopus is notable for using tools to catch prey — namely, seashells and coconut shells. (Photo: Rickard Zerpe [CC by 2.0]/Wikimedia Commons)

This cephalopod is one of the most intelligent invertebrates around, gathering and saving coconut shells and seashells as shelters to hide in before attacking their prey.

这种头足类动物是周围最聪明的无脊椎动物之一，它们在攻击猎物之前会收集和保存椰子壳和贝壳作为庇护所。

Brittle star

海蛇尾

A green brittle star in the UK's Chester Zoo. (Photo: Neil [CC by SA 3.0]/Wikimedia Commons)

Closely related to starfish, brittle stars move briskly along the seafloor, thanks to their long, slender arms. They're also excellent multitaskers, with a five-jawed mouth that also serves as an anus (eek!), and the ability to regenerate lost arms.

海蛇尾与海星关系密切，由于它们细长的手臂，它们能在海底轻快地移动。它们也是出色的多任务处理者，有一张五爪的嘴，同时也有肛门和再生失去的手臂的能力。

Leafy seadragon

利氏海龙

A leafy sea dragon near Australia's Kangaroo Island. (Photo: James Rosindell [CC SA 4.0]/Wikimedia Commons)

The king of camouflage, these "leafies" live amongst kelp and seaweed in the waters off south and east Australia. Their reproductive systems are as progressive as their seahorse cousin, with males incubating their eggs on the underside of their tail until they hatch. Divers often caught and kept them as pets until the Australian government placed protective regulations on them in the 1990s.

作为伪装之王，这些“海龙”生活在澳大利亚南部和东部海域的海带和海藻中。它们的生殖系统就像它们的海马表亲一样进化，雄海马会在尾巴下方产卵，直到孵化。潜水员经常捕捉它们作为宠物饲养，直到上世纪90年代澳大利亚政府对它们实施了保护规定。

Christmas tree worms

圣诞树蠕虫

Assorted Christmas tree worms take shelter on a coral reef. (Photo: Nick Hobgood [CC SA 3.0]/Wikimedia Commons)

These spiraled beauties are scattered throughout oceans worldwide, but you'll most likely find them setting up shop on a stony coral. Their feathery "crowns" act as both a filter for food and a harness for oxygen, with each worm having two trees. They can live as long as 40 years, making them a much better investment than your typical Christmas fir tree.

这些螺旋形的美人分布在世界各地的海洋中，但你很可能会发现它们在石质珊瑚上开店。它们羽毛状的“王冠”既是食物的过滤器，也是氧气的安全带，每条蠕虫都有两棵树。它们可以活到40岁，这使得它们比普通的圣诞树更值得投资。

Enypniastes eximia

“无头鸡怪

This benthopelagic sea cucumber enjoys swimming in freezing waters. (Photo: NOAA Okeanos Explorer [public domain]/Wikimedia Commons)

These deep-sea sea cucumbers were not caught on camera until 2017, though they were discovered sometime in the 1880s. Unkindly called a "headless chicken monster" by scientists, the see-through animal has the important job of filtering sediment on the ocean floor. It doesn't have a true brain or sensory organs, but you can watch its entire digestive system at work! Because after all, beauty really is in the eye of the beholder.

这些深海海参直到2017年才被拍到，尽管它们是在19世纪80年代被发现的。这种透明动物被科学家们无情地称为“无头鸡怪”，它有过滤海底沉积物的重要功能。它没有真正的大脑或感觉器官，但你可以看到它的整个消化系统在工作!因为毕竟，美真的存在于观者的眼中。