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WACKY ANIMALS!!!!!!

#1 Coral

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Reef-building corals can be most commonly found in the tropics and sub tropics soaking up some sun in the warm shallow waters. These cnidarians are so wacky that they are animals, plants and minerals. Animals because they feed on zooplankton, plants because they photosynthesize thanks to zooxanthellae living in their tissues, and minerals because of their hard skeletons of carbon calcium. Even the way they reproduce is wacky. Their limitless array of color attracts tourists from every corner of the globe while even the locals are in awe of its beauty. They may reproduce sexually by releasing packets of eggs and /or sperm into the water, or asexually by budding or detaching from their parent coral in order grow as a new coral outpost. A lot of sea creatures live within and around the outskirts of the coral reefs which provides food and work for willing fishermen. Even though the coral reefs cover less than one quarter of one percent of the ocean, they boast a wide collection of some of the most diverse sea creatures known to man which is why coral reefs are one of the top economical industries in the WORLD!

#2 Jellyfish

Also of the phylum cnidarian are the famed jellyfish. With their gelatinous composed of just about 95% water rendering them virtually invisible, these radially symmetric adventurers of the sea are a prime example of why the ocean is so majestic. They come in all sorts of shapes and sizes such as small and long or big and bulging. Jellyfish operate a mouth that opens into a stomach for digestion and dangerous stinging tentacles lined with thousands of venom-filled nematocysts that can grow up to 100 feet long. They may use these tentacles to ward off predators or make their dining experience more manageable. All jellyfish are carnivorous and sometimes cannibalistic feeding mainly on zooplankton, small fishes, or other jellyfish. They can be found in all parts of the ocean from the deepest depths reaching 23,000 feet, to the surface in hot or cold temperatures. Like their fellow cnidarians, jellyfish release sperm into the water which can either fertilized by drifting eggs or eggs attached to a female. After becoming fertilized, the polyp structure will attach itself to the sea bed awaiting its budding stage which my be prolonged for days, months, or even years for favorable conditions to release a swarm of baby jellies which is probably why they flourish periodically. Although only a delicacy in Asia, jellyfish are of great importance to humans. One specific glowing green jellyfish has helped in the medical field by using its green fluorescent protein to combat human diseases such as cancer, HIV, and Alzheimer’s.

#3 Starfish

From the phylum Echinodermata hails the sea star, the silent but deadly abyss lurker. There are at least two thousand species of them and they may own from five to fifty limbs. Though their arm count is quite impressive, their wackiest trait is most definitely their amazing superpower of regeneration. If one arm proves itself inconvenient, it can be self-amputated and later regrown. This is also a resourceful tactic of reproduction as it may split itself in half and regrow the rest of its body or simply regenerate its body from a severed limb only if there is a part of the central disk attached. Though sea stars can reproduce asexually, sexual reproduction, where millions of eggs and sperm are released into the water, is still an option. These organisms are radially symmetric meaning they can be divided into similar halves by any pane that contains the main axis. These brainless creatures with tubed feet and sea water for blood just get wackier in the way they feed.  Their duplicate internal organs reside in their arms and their digestive organs within their central disk which branches out slightly into each arm. Shellfish, being a delicacy of sea stars, are the perfect meal as it temporarily evicts one of its two stomachs into the preys shell secreting digestive enzymes that liquefy their prey making them easy to slurp up. Sea stars are an ever-popular symbol of the ocean. Sea stars are also very important to the biomedical field because of the research done on their regenerating skills and how they may be applied to human ailments and injuries, the better understanding of inflammation, and their mucus being investigated for its use in battling respiratory diseases, allergies, and infections.
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