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Cover Legend: Taschenquallen (Cnidaria: Scyphozoa) by Ernst Haeckel (1834–1919), the German scientist who coined the phrase “ontogeny recapitulates phylogeny” and the terms “Darwinism” and “ecology.” Haeckel traveled far and wide, from Sicily to Ceylon, to the North Sea, and beyond. Sketchpads and watercolors accompanied his microscope wherever he went. His on-the-spot drawings of deep-sea vegetation, aquatic creatures, frogs, birds, and higher animals were turned into more than 1000 engravings. From this treasure trove, a selection of 100 colored lithographs was produced for publication in his Kunstformen der Natur. The work is considered one of the marvels of 19th century naturalist illustration. The central figure in this plate illustrates a giant corona-crowned jellyfish. It is based on a specimen found on the Challenger Expedition (1873–1876) in 6600 feet of water off the coast of New Zealand. Deep-sea creatures such as this were dredged up from the lower depths, stored in wine or water, and after months of marinating were sent (in highly degraded form) to eminent scientists for “reconstitution” and illustration. Haeckel had extensive experience with this species. A letter to his parents from the Canary Islands, dated January 27, 1867, reads: “Imagine a delicate, slender flowering whose leaves and brightly colored flowers are transparent like glass and which meanders through the water with the most graceful, sprightly movements.” (Plate 38, Kunstformen der Natur, 1904. From the exhibition “Ernst Haeckel: Art Forms in Nature” at the MBLWHOI library, curated by Ann Weissmann. http://www.mblwhoilibrary.org/haeckel/wallcharts/images/large/plate_38.jpg)

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