Fungi > Helotiaceae & Gelatinous Cup Fungi
The Purple Jellydisc (Ascocoryne sarcoides), also recognized by mushroom enthusiasts as the Jelly Drop or Flesh Cup fungus, is a striking and vibrant ascomycete fungus commonly encountered in autumn across temperate woodlands. Forming clusters of glowing amethyst and...
Invertebrates > Teuthida & Cephalopods
The Grimaldi Scaled Squid (Lepidoteuthis grimaldii) is one of the most enigmatic and physically bizarre large squid species inhabiting the dark ocean depths. Named in honor of Prince Albert I of Monaco (a Grimaldi), whose oceanographic expeditions first recovered...
Invertebrates > Cephalopods & Octopuses
Agassiz’s Flapjack Octopus (Opisthoteuthis agassizii) is an enchanting, deep-dwelling cirrate cephalopod named after renowned Swiss-American naturalist Alexander Agassiz. Residing on dark bathyal and abyssal sea bottoms hundreds to thousands of meters down, this...
Fungi > Cortinariaceae & Agaricales
Archer’s Cortinar (Cortinarius archeri) is one of Australia’s most spectacular and colorful native macrofungi. Renowned for its vivid, deep amethyst-to-violet cap coated in a thick, glistening layer of protective slime when young, this mycorrhizal gilled...
Plants > Cycads & Zamiaceae
The Modjadji Cycad (Encephalartos transvenosus) is one of the largest and most awe-inspiring palm-like gymnosperms on Earth. Native to the mist-shrouded mountain slopes of Limpopo, South Africa, this majestic living fossil forms a prehistoric forest preserved for...
