Marine Biology Links

I find books great and love to sit and scan through their pages. However, they get to be a bit expensive and sometimes they just do not cover what I want. The internet is so much more complete but finding an answer can sometimes be difficult.

Searches throw up lots of results, which are not always consistent. I often find that different scientific names are given and I do not have the experience to know which are correct and which are redundant.

Image searches often show pictures of other similar creatures not the exact species I want. For instance, sometimes a picture is of the species I want but it might not look the same because of variations due to habitat, stage of development and other factors.

Useful links

The following marine biology sites are all well respected and have helped me to identify and record my rock-pool discoveries with a bit more certainty. Some of the content looks a bit frightening at first but I am learning to pick out the bits I need.

Please feel free to suggest other useful sites with a comment. I will only approve those that are relevant and appropriate.

Marine Biology

Marine Biology Association	mba.ac.uk	The Marine Biological Association (MBA) is one of the world’s longest-running societies dedicated to promoting research into our oceans and the life they support. Since 1884 we have been providing a unified, clear, independent voice on behalf of the marine biological community.
Marine Life Information Network	marlin.ac.uk	MarLIN hosts the largest review of the effects of human activities and natural events on marine species and habitats yet undertaken.
National Aquarium, Plymouth	www.national-aquarium.co.uk	The National Marine Aquarium, located in Britain’s Ocean City – Plymouth. Not only is it the largest Aquarium in the UK, but it is also the home of the Ocean Conservation Trust, a charity dedicated to connecting people with the Ocean.
Biological records Centre	brc.ac.uk	The Biological Records Centre (BRC), established in 1964, is a national focus in the UK for terrestrial and freshwater species recording.
National Biodiversity Network Atlas	nbnatlas.org	The NBN Atlas is an online tool that educates and informs people about the natural world.
Natural History Book Service	nhbs.com	NHBS started life as the Natural History Book Service in 1985. Our core purpose is to support those who work to understand, protect, and conserve the natural environment.
Wembury Marine Centre	wemburymarinecentre.org	Wembury Marine Centre is the ideal place to learn about the surrounding area and its wildlife through interactive displays, tanks, regular Rockpool Safaris and other marine themed events.
Sea Grass Spotter	seagrassspotter.org	At Project Seagrass, we’ve developed a conservation and education tool that could lead to new discoveries about one of the ocean’s most under-appreciated habitats – seagrass.
WoRMS – World Register of Marine Species	marinespecies.org	The aim of a World Register of Marine Species (WoRMS) is to provide an authoritative and comprehensive list of names of marine organisms, including information on synonymy. While the highest priority goes to valid names, other names in use are included so that this register can serve as a guide to interpret taxonomic literature.
British Marine Life Study Society	glaucus.org.uk	The British Marine Life Study Society is responsible for producing the journal GLAUCUS, which is the first publication exploring the marine life of the seas surrounding the British Isles available to the general public.

Fun facts


ThoughtCo.	ThoughtCo.com/marine-life	Marine life - essential facts

Technical

Just as the above links help with species identification, this section links to the software that I use in order to make this site look pretty. I am no expert and better programs may exist. Many of these are open-source, making them free to use for non-commercial applications like this. Again, feel free to suggest useful alternatives.