The crabs in the exhibit next door don't need to dig in. Their armored shells protect them as they scuttle across open, sandy plains. Quick-change artists, flatfishes match their color to their background. They hide where there's no place to hide by lying low and blending in. Just when you think you've seen them all, a bit of seafloor swims off in search of lunch.
Sand dollars spend their lives here, too.
Standing on edge, half-wedged into sandy pockets, they trap bits of food or grab small prey drifting on the currents. Anemones and sea pens root their tubes deep in the sand.