The Most Important Creature in the Ocean

Good Eating: The Short Life of Krill
Written by Matt Lilley & Illustrated by Dan Tavis
Age Level: 6-8 Years
Published January 11, 2022

Not just surviving, they’re thriving.

Seals, penguins, and blue whales get lots of attention, but what about the teeny tiny creatures they all depend on to exist? There are over 80 species of krill in the world and an estimated 500 trillion krills swimming in Earth’s seas. This book features one the most important varieties, the Antarctic krill, which is the keystone species of the Southern Ocean. These 2.5 inch long swimmers are experts at devouring phytoplankton, and by eating plankton, krill make that critical food source available to the larger animals who feed upon them.

To educate readers about Antarctic krill, we follow their life cycle, starting with the egg dropping off the continental shelf of Antarctica and sinking for miles into the dark depths. Over the course of several pages, the krill slowly develop and reveal to readers important - and sometimes downright weird - features, like that when they eat enough plants their stomach turns green, and that its body has bioluminescent spots. When you read that a blue whale eats one million krill in a single meal you might think they don’t live for very long, but for the ones that manage to escape, they can live for up to 10 years!

“On the surface, seabirds swoop down for you.
Under the ice, penguins plunge for you. Down deep, seals might devour you. And then there are the whales…”

This isn’t your typical dry nonfiction book. The krill are cartoonishly drawn with expressive goofy faces, and the story is written with plenty of humor to keep readers entertained while packing in lots of information. For kids who are especially curious, there are a few pages of backmatter packed with extra facts and a recommended reading list.