A fever dream of jellies and slugs

The Art and Science of Ernst Haeckel Julia Voss & Rainer Willmann Taschen (2026)To immerse yourself in the world of naturalist Ernst Haeckel is to fall into a kaleidoscope of vibrant sea slugs, coiling octopuses, looping larvae and bulbous bodies. These tantalizing creatures float and wriggle before your eyes, mesmerizing in their curious contortion.Nature at its weirdest: what metamorphosis reveals about science and ourselvesThe Art and Science of Ernst Haeckel brings together 450 detailed drawings, watercolours and sketches created by this nineteenth-century German polymath. Inside its pages, umbrella-shaped medusae, or jellyfish, trail their tentacles like ethereal bridal veils. Spiky radiolarians — microscopic zooplankton found throughout the ocean — take strange forms, calling to mind