"A young wunderpus octopus, staring you right in the eye, is the perfect choice for the opening spread of Eric Hoyt's latest book celebrating the oceans' wonders... Page after page, we see the surprising shapes, colors and intricate details of secretive animals -- many in their juvenile forms -- that dash to the surface on nocturnal forays. Hoyt's curated collection of images from various underwater photographers continues into the deep twilight zone and onto the seabed, showcasing the mesmerizing range of life far beneath the waves."
--BBC Wildlife Magazine

Marine researchers are discovering new ocean creatures every day, especially at its deepest depths. From the author of Creatures of the Deep, Encyclopedia of Whales, Dolphins and Porpoises and other books about the ocean and the animals that live there, comes a new title about some of the most unusual marine life forms.

The book organizes the creatures into three parts based on where they live in the ocean. Informative captions accompany the 90 gorgeous photographs of otherworldly creatures.

Part 1: Surface Waters of the Ocean at Night: The Blackwater Vertical Migrators

• In images taken by dedicated blackwater photographers Linda Ianniello and Susan Mears, these mostly larval creatures haunt the near-surface waters making vertical migrations every night to feed.

Part 2: Middle to Deep Dark Waters: Masters of the Language of Light

• In this perpetual night, survival is a matter of being able to understand and process light signals, some in different colors, some flashing, some faint -- the most sophisticated use of bioluminescence on Earth. The sea creatures here are small with big eyes and even larger mouths with extraordinarily sharp teeth.

Part 3. The Continental Shelf to the Abyssal Plain: The Bottom Dwellers

• This bottom of the sea has fewer fish, and is populated by such alien-like creatures as no-eyed or tripod fish, sea cucumbers, as well as basket stars, crabs, and worms with species varying by depth and location.

The photographs were taken in the ocean by expert divers and submariners, most of whom are both scientists and underwater photographers. The images display the creatures vividly against a background as black as the ocean depths.

Strange Sea Creatures received an Honorable Mention in the "Best Children's-Young Adult Nonfiction Book" category in the American Society of Journalists and Authors Annual Writing Awards (2021).

Erich Hoyt has spent much of his life on or beside the sea, working with whales and dolphins and marine conservation in the world's oceans. A noted conservationist and scientist and an award-winning author, he has written 24 books including the acclaimed Orca: The Whale Called Killer, Insect Lives, The Earth Dwellers, Creatures of the Deep, Encyclopedia of Whales, Dolphins and Porpoises, and the children's books Weird Sea Creatures and Whale Rescue. He lives in Dorset, England.