Kelp forest / seaweed meadow
True underwater forests of giant seaweed, a refuge and pantry for abundant wildlife.
Harmless
Leafy seadragon
Phycodurus eques
Leafy seadragon
A fish that looks exactly like a drifting piece of seaweed — the most spectacular camouflage in temperate marine wildlife.
🌊 3–50 m
- ⚡ Near-perfect camouflage mimicking the surrounding seaweed
- ⚡ The male carries and protects the eggs until they hatch
Harmless
Sunflower sea star
Pycnopodia helianthoides
Sunflower sea star
One of the largest starfish in the world, able to move surprisingly fast thanks to more than 15,000 tube feet, but today decimated by over 90% by a mysterious disease.
🌊 0–120 m
- ⚡ Can have up to 24 arms and more than 15,000 tube feet
- ⚡ One of the fastest starfish known, over a metre per minute