An elegant survey of ocean invertebrates and their bizarre “superpowers,” blending cutting edge science of the strangest creatures on our planet with the promising discoveries they hold for those of us on land, by a leading marine biologist

Hundred-year-old giant clams, coral kingdoms the size and shape of cities, and jellyfish that glow in the dark: ocean invertebrates are among the oldest and most diverse organisms on earth, bending our rules of land-based biology. Although often overlooked, the spineless creatures of the deep contain 600 million years of adaptation to problems of disease, energy consumption, nutrition, and defense.

In THE ANCIENT MENAGERIE, world-renowned marine ecologist Dr. Drew Harvell takes us from Hawaii to the Salish Sea, from St. Croix to Indonesia, to uncover the incredible underwater “superpowers” of spineless creatures: we meet corals many times stronger than steel or concrete, sponges who create potent chemical compounds to fight off disease, and sea stars that act as gardeners for coastlines, keeping all the other nearby species in perfect balance. As our planet changes fast, the biomedical, engineering, and energy innovations of these wonderous creatures hold ever more important secrets to our own survival.

THE ANCIENT MENAGERIE is a tale of biological marvels, a story of a woman’s passionate connection to a career in science, and a call to arms to protect the world’s most ancient ecosystems.