Naive beach campers often fall victim while sleeping

March 29, 2008 4:49 AM

This a fast offensive predator. First described by Reinthal, 1993, as voracious and a threat to shipping. Diurnal, collecting in dense aggregations along reef walls at night to sleep. Oweni is an insatiable consumer of almost everything of animal origin. Suspect in many human "shark" fatalities, although remains of victims have never been recovered - Field Notes and Drawings of Marine Creatures Captured or Observed by Xisle Expedition Biologist & Artist William Russell Curtsinger, PhD.

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I actually came across this page while searching for something about marine bioluminescence, and was taken in for a tick or two. I hope a lot of other people fall prey in the same way and are lured into the same delicious wtf?-moment, because I think it's kind of adorable. Based on the species names, I think these might be tributes to friends and colleagues.

FF users, right click in images and select "view image" to see larger versions of the drawings.

posted by taz (11 comments total)

Wow, those are really fantastic and they'd look great in a classroom.
Reminds me of the Voynich Manuscript.
posted by PHINC at 5:03 AM on March 29

Wow, those wacky academics and their craaazy sense of humor. I can imagine them standing around the biology lab laughing like choking throat-singers over this.
posted by Henry C. Mabuse at 5:16 AM on March 29 [1 favorite]

It's well worth it to go past this page to the rest of Curtsinger's site and see his other work.
posted by wobh at 9:45 AM on March 29

love it.
posted by yazi at 11:45 AM on March 29

I really wish those illustrations were bigger, because I love them.
posted by louche mustachio at 12:24 PM on March 29

AH right-click view image blows them right up. YAY!
posted by louche mustachio at 12:25 PM on March 29

I love this! It reminds me of the fanciful, yet real-seeming, creatures in "The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou."
posted by amyms at 1:25 PM on March 29

There's a peyote flavor to his drawings.
posted by Devils Slide at 2:18 PM on March 29

laughing like choking throat-singers

Strong work HCM!
posted by nicwolff at 2:25 PM on March 29

There's a peyote flavor to his drawings.

Mmmm, mmm! Like a hobo's boot marinated in Aqua Net and buried in dogshit for a week... peyote flavor! *hurk*

But they do have that feeling, yes.
posted by louche mustachio at 2:32 PM on March 29

AH right-click view image blows them right up. YAY!

You know, it's probably good that the Boston Police haven't figured out how to cordon off web sites.
posted by Kid Charlemagne at 3:38 PM on March 29