Best Spiny

The Venus Comb Murex, scientifically known as *Murex pecten*, is a marine snail native to the Indo-Pacific region. It’s notable for its distinctive shell featuring over one hundred long, spiny projections along its outer lip – resembling a comb. These shells are highly valued by collectors and enthu...

The Southern rock lobster (Jasus edwardsii) is a spiny lobster species found in cold waters off southern Australia and New Zealand. It’s notable for its significant role in commercial fisheries, particularly within Australia and New Zealand, representing one of the world's largest exports of this ty...

Comura is a Devonian-era trilobite discovered in Morocco. It’s notable for its exceptionally elongated spines extending from both its thorax and tail shield, characteristics defining its Lichida family lineage. These unique features make Comura specimens highly sought after by paleontologists and fo...

A Devonian cheirurid trilobite from Morocco, distinguished by segmented genal spines resembling a rattlesnake's rattle, earning it the popular name 'rattlesnake trilobite.'

Echinocactus polycephalus is a barrel cactus native to desert regions of the southwestern United States and northwestern Mexico, including parts of the Mojave and Sonoran deserts. Mature plants often form clusters of multiple rounded or cylindrical stems covered by dense, stout spines. Adapted to ex...

The Spiny-backed Orbweaver, *Gasteracantha cancriformis*, is a striking spider found throughout the Americas. Its most notable feature is a hardened carapace covered in prominent spines, providing protection. This species constructs large orb webs and is particularly common in disturbed habitats. It...

Odontopleura is a genus of extinct odontopleurid trilobites known from Paleozoic marine rocks. Like related members of Odontopleuridae, it possessed a strongly ornamented exoskeleton with conspicuous spines extending from parts of the head, thorax, and tail shield. Fossils assigned to the genus are...

Osmanthus heterophyllus is a dense evergreen shrub originating in Asia. It’s recognized by its distinctive spiny leaves resembling holly and produces strongly scented white flowers in fall. This plant is particularly valued for creating hedges or screens and is suitable for gardeners seeking an orna...

The European spiny lobster (Palinurus elephas) is a large crustacean found in the temperate waters of the northeastern Atlantic and Mediterranean Sea. It’s notable for its prominent spines and plays an important role in marine ecosystems. Commercial fisheries target this species, primarily benefitin...

Devonian odontopleurid trilobite with a distinctive elongated pygidium bearing prominent terminal spines, found in Devonian rocks across Europe.

Astrophytum ornatum is a columnar cactus native to the central Mexican plateau, occurring in the states of Querétaro, Hidalgo, and Guanajuato. It is the largest species in the genus Astrophytum, capable of reaching heights exceeding one meter, and is distinguished by its star-shaped cross-section an...

The Japanese spiny lobster, *Panulirus japonicus*, is a commercially important crustacean found throughout the northwest Pacific Ocean. It’s notable for its unique appearance and flavor profile, highly valued in Japanese cuisine. This species primarily inhabits temperate waters around Japan and is f...

Leonaspis tuberculata is an extinct species of trilobite belonging to the odontopleurid group, whose members are known for elaborate spines and strongly ornamented exoskeletons. It lived during the Devonian Period and is identified from fossilized portions of its segmented external skeleton. The spe...

The Macracantha arcuata, or long-horned orb-weaver, is a Southeast Asian spider recognized for its distinctive elongated abdominal spines. These spiders construct large, elaborate orb webs and are notable for this unique physical characteristic. Primarily found in the region’s rainforests, they are...

The Spiny Lumpsucker is a small marine fish notable for the prominent, spiky tubercles covering its body and its modified pelvic suction disc.

Devonian odontopleurid trilobite notable for horn-like forward projections on its glabella, known from Devonian strata of Europe and North Africa.

The Cuban furry lobster, *Palinurellus gundlachi*, is a small, spiny lobster found exclusively in the Caribbean Sea. It’s notable as the only species within its genus native to the Western Atlantic Ocean. Primarily inhabiting shallow coastal waters, this lobster is of interest to marine biologists s...

Acidaspis is a genus of extinct trilobites associated with the family Odontopleuridae, a group noted for elaborate defensive spines. Its members were relatively small marine arthropods with spines around the cephalon and along the pleural segments of the thorax. Fossils assigned to the genus occur i...

The eastern rock lobster, Sagmariasus verreauxi, is a large spiny lobster native to temperate waters around southeastern Australia and northern New Zealand. Unlike true clawed lobsters, it has long antennae and lacks the enlarged front claws characteristic of species in the family Nephropidae. It in...

Native to northwestern Argentina, the giant chin cactus is notable for being the largest known species within its genus, capable of reaching 30 centimeters in diameter.

The Pacific Thornback Ray (Platyrhinoidis triseriata) is the sole member of its genus, endemic to the eastern Pacific from California to the Gulf of California.

The purple dye murex (Bolinus brandaris) is a species of medium-sized predatory sea snail belonging to the Muricidae family, found in the Mediterranean Sea. It is historically significant for its role in antiquity as the primary source of Tyrian purple, a highly prized dye extracted from the snail's...

The Indo-Pacific furry lobster (Palinurellus wieneckii) is a crustacean belonging to the family Palinuridae, commonly known as spiny lobsters. It is physically distinguished by a dense covering of hair-like structures called setae that give its exoskeleton a distinct fuzzy appearance. This species l...

The painted rock lobster (Panulirus versicolor) is a strikingly colored spiny lobster with green and white banding, distributed across Indo-Pacific coral reef environments from East Africa to the central Pacific.

Greenops is a genus of phacopid trilobites known from Devonian marine rocks in North America. Fossils assigned to the genus have a segmented exoskeleton, prominent eyes, and spines extending from parts of the thorax and pygidium, while articulated specimens can preserve the enrolled defensive postur...

Crocodile newts are amphibians belonging to the genus Tylototriton, native to the mountain forests and humid highlands of Southeast Asia and China. They are named for their distinct, rough-textured skin, which features prominent bony cranial crests and prominent knobs along their vertebral column an...

Astrophytum ornatum, commonly called Monk's Hood Cactus, is a columnar cactus native to central Mexico and the largest species in the genus Astrophytum, capable of reaching approximately one meter in height. It was the first Astrophytum species to be scientifically described, catalogued in 1827. The...

Kettneraspis is an extinct genus of spiny odontopleurid trilobite that existed during the Devonian period. It is distinguished by an elaborately ornamented exoskeleton, featuring elongated, sweeping marginal spines that line both the cephalon and the pygidium. Fossils of this genus are commonly unco...

Endemic to the Baja California Peninsula, the agria cactus produces sour edible fruits and its crushed stems were traditionally used by indigenous peoples to catch fish.