Mapping an ocean of creatures

This 3-centimeter-long isopod, a relative of the land-dwelling pill bug, was collected 1.25 miles down in the Celebes Sea from a remotely operated vehicle.  (Larry Madin / Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution)

This transparent pink sea cucumber, as its full (and fully visible) gut attests, has recently dined. It eats on the ocean floor and uses its wing-like collar to swim.  (Larry Madin / Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution)

Scientists believe this transparent jellyfish has red pigment around its stomach to keep bioluminescent prey, as it digests, from advertising the jellyfish’s whereabouts to larger, hungry animals.  (Larry Madin / Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution)

This squid, Histioteuthis sp., is about 6 inches long and is covered with spots, called chromatophores, that let it change color at will. Its eyes are different sizes.  (Larry Madin / Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution)

The Census of Marine Life embarked on about 400 shipboard expeditions from the tropics to the polar regions, finding more than 5,600 suspected new species so far. “It’s going to be the Rosetta Stone for the future,” said one biologist.  (Chris Linder / Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution)