In the mythologies of most cultures of the world that had contact with the ocean, there were tales of sea gods and goddesses. The ancients envisioned deities in marine weather phenomenon, navigational hazards and rocks, as well as marine animals.

However, nowadays, researchers are prone to explain away the origin of these mythological beings by putting things in the light of scientific knowledge. For example, the waters off the coast of Italy are still quite hazardous around rocks named Scylla and a whirlpool called Charybdes. But these are now known to be just rocks and a whirlpool and not an accursed sea nymph with barking dogs forming the lower part of her body or a sea goddess that is continually gulping down sea water and spitting it out again.

Yet, despite the modern tendency to explain away ancient myths in dry scientific terms, the legacy of many of the legendary ladies of the sea has remained. Many of the scientific names that have been given to marine animals are based on old Greek, Roman and other mythological names. Sometimes, there are logical, easy to see connections, although at times, as with the initial myths themselves, quite a bit of imagination is needed. So today that fear-inspiring Scylla has become the namesake for the sargassum nudibranch (Scyllacea pelagica) and the terrible Carybdis' name has been attached to the members of the terrible sea wasp family Carybeidae, (including Carybdea marsupialis which is sometimes found off the California coast).

Among the most famous of the mythical sea ladies of old were the mermaids. Some researchers try to explain the legends of these away by saying that after months at sea, tired sailors saw the manatees of the West Indies as beautiful women. Not everyone is willing to go along with this idea, but somehow the idea of placing those same chubby manatees in the family Sirenia seems quite acceptable. Yet sirens were supposed to be sea nymphs that were part bird and part woman. They were said to been able to seduce sailors to their destruction by their seductive songs. Those roly-poly manatees don't really seem to fit the description of sirens very much at all.

Nor does the lowly rock louse, Ligia, a couple of species which scamper around California's intertidal rocks. That genus name is in honor of one of the Sirens, Ligeia. A rock, somehow, doesn't seem to be all that alluring - nor is it especially noted for its enchanting singing abilities.

Oh, well. Logic didn't necessarily dictate the old legends, nor does it always seem to come that much into play in the honorific names based on these legendary personages. For instance, nowadays people tend to be particularly enamored with seashells, so one might expect to find a whole bevy of sea goddess namesakes attached to these. There are a few, such as the obscure Indo-Pacific clam Idothea, the name of a sea goddess (but even with this case, it is not the preferred scientific name of this genus). Seashells have lots and lots of names based on ancient goddesses, but oddly enough, more typically those of the land and not the sea.

When it came to naming nudibranchs, though, sea deities became well represented. All of the nudibranchs that are basically slug-like and lack the frilly cerata on their backs are called "dorids," in the suborder Doridae. This name was given after Doris, the daughter of Oceanus. Along the California shore, the large lemon nudibranch is Anisodoris, the blue-and-gold nudibranch is Hypselodoris, and there is also Acanthodoris, Onchidoris, Diaphorodoris and several others.

Doris was said to be the mother of 50 ocean nymphs who were called the nereids. Today nereids are also said to inhabit the sea; however, not as eternally young, charming women but as worms. Yuck! There are over a dozen species of nereids found along the coast of California, including the mussel worm (Neries vexillosa), which can grow to several feet in length and is a popular source of bait that is used by sportfishermen. Some species of nereids are almost attractive in their own way - well, sort of - but they are still worms. Plus, they can deliver a nasty bite if not handled carefully.

Yet, really, when considering the topic of legendary ladies of the sea, the application of their names to not the most appealing of creatures is not that out of character. Nowadays, mermaids and sea nymphs are often portrayed as being cute and benevolent. (Modern women who don scuba equipment obviously like to envision themselves as that type of mermaid or sea nymph as they gracefully frolic in the water.) But in fact, the ancient sea deities were more typically monstrous, mean and downright nasty creatures that were to be avoided if at all possible!

So actually, as more and more people explore the underwater world and learn about marine life, it is good to know that none of the animals they will be encountering, even those that were named after the legendary ladies of the sea, be they even sea wasps or worms, are anywhere nearly as bad as their namesakes.