Even though we are a small filter feeder eating plankton of all sorts, we are super important as prey for larger fish like striped bass, tuna and sharks!
While I might not be great to eat, I am most prized for my silvery beauty in laehe tanks at aquariums!
As Maryland and New York's state marine fish, we are a prized by recreational fisherman because we put up a good fight and taste really good!
I have fused teeth that give me a "beak" and I puff-up with water to protect myself from predators trying to eat me!
I look like my cousin the seahorses I am straightened out... I act the same ,too... males carry the babies in their pouch.
I like colder waters and my tentacles have been known to grow almost as long as a blue whale, but around here I do t get that big! Watch out, I will sting!
I look prehistoric because I am! But those scary looks don't mean a thing... I am totally harmless and I don't sting, bite, or pinch!
Most crabs like to hang out on rocks or near the bottom, but I have paddle-like flippers that help me swim to catch fish!
An early version of the submarine was called "Turtle". It measured about 7.5 feet long and 6 feet wide. during the revolutionary war, it was used (unsuccessfully) to attach time bombs on British warships in New York Harbor.
If I'm big, you can get a fillet from me...catch me on your hook and I will croak at you!
I am the squishy animal inside the shell I made and if I don't like where I am, I can use my foot to move to a better place to live!
Be careful if you see me, I might be squishy with a cartilage skeleton but I will shock you with up to 220 volts! Thats how I hunt for bony fishes and the occasional small shark!
I have a long tail for a reason... after I circle and trap a school of fish, I whip it down from above to stun my prey!
I live in the brackish water and the bay looking for fish and shrimp to eat, but I do not have flippers like a sea turtle.
Sometimes I bite your bait and you hook me, but be careful... if you touch the bony, star- shaped ridge on my head, I will shock you!
I like to eat planktonic crustaceans as I hide in the eel grass and the males carry the young in their pouch. When ready, the fry are born looking like mini adults.
