Karl August Möbius was born on February 7, 1825, in Eilenburg, Saxony, Gemany.

He was a German zoologist, a pioneer in the field of ecology, and an author. He worked first as an elementary school teacher at Seesen in the Harz Mountains (1844-1849) until his interest in natural history took him to the University of Berlin to study natural sciences. He continued teaching at the Johanneum High School in Hamburg (1853-1868). His skills as a scientist gained him a reputation that led to a post at the Hamburg Museum of Natural History. In 1863, he cofounded the Hamburg Zoo and was the chief designer of Germany’s first public aquarium. In 1868, shortly after receiving his Ph.D. degree from the University of Halle, he was appointed Professor of Zoology at the University of Kiel and the director of its Zoological Museum. Möbius was commissioned by the Ministry of Agricultural Affairs in Prussia to conduct research on the Bay of Kiel oyster beds (1868-1870). He expanded his studies to marine biology and conducted research throughout the northern European coasts. He participated in an expedition to Mauritius and Seychelles in 1874-1875 and wrote a comprehensive review of the fauna of that area which became a standard text in marine biology. His book "Fauna der Kieler Bucht" (2 vols., 1865–1872) established an important methodology for modern ecology. In 1888, he became the director of the Zoological Collections of the Natural History Museum of Berlin, and Professor of Systematic and Geographical Zoology at the Kaiser Wilhelm University, Berlin, where he taught until his retirement in 1905.

He married Helen Pauline Meyer (1831-1921). He died on April 26, 1908, in Berlin, Germany.