Marine Animals

In 2015, great white sharks vanished from Australia's Neptune Islands. Experts are still trying to work out why
Many researchers thought the two-month absence was caused by the predation of a white shark by a group of orcas. Now a new study suggests there may be other reasons for their disappearance.

As darkness fell, snorkellers in the Maldives filmed this giant engulfing its prey
Whale sharks are the biggest fish on the planet but they feed on tiny plankton.

One mile down, iron-rich waters, toxic fluids, and 81°C acidic vents made this volcano seem uninhabitable – yet scientists filmed something staggering
Eel City was discovered in 2005 but, when scientists returned in 2017, they couldn’t find any sign of the mysterious place
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It’s bigger than the City of London and is home to a whopping 7.5 billion residents – or more
The largest oyster reef restoration in the world is over three square miles and brings many benefits to the ecosystem

Plants play techno, chimps drum and one creature uses its minuscule penis as a bow – why music isn’t just for humans
It’s not just the hills that are alive with the sound of music – ponds and oceans thrum with tunes, too

It lasted thousands of years and puzzled Aristotle and Freud – is this the biggest animal mystery of all time?
Scientists were left baffled over how eels reproduced – leading to the belief they spontaneously spawned

"It came up with a mako shark in its mouth, eating some, then delivering the rest to – me. What happened next was extraordinary..."
Out of season, the chances of seeing wildlife might be lower but, the encounters can be even more incredible, as these wildlife lovers learned when they came face to face with orcas.

“The fish life has exploded": 400,000 corals planted on dying reef in Bali. What happened next was remarkable
A diver in Indonesia was distraught at seeing coral reefs destroyed. So, he decided to do something about it.

A massive wave capsized my kayak, leaving me stranded in waters known for great whites. Then something peculiar happened
Chuck Graham shares an incredible encounter in California’s ‘Shark Park’

Weirdest octopuses: meet 8 strange sea creatures, including one that pretends to be a snake and one with a detachable ‘penis’
From the octopus that walks on land to another that grows its own ‘lifejacket’, discover these unusual species

They're older than dinosaurs, look a bit like aliens and eat almost anything they can find – and scientists just found them in Colombian waters
These researchers captured photos that wouldn’t look out of place in an art gallery and used them to confirm new species of comb jellies never recorded in Colombia before.

“This one day, we saw something darker.” Diver films "unbelievable" animal attack in Mexico
When this ocean filmmaker visited a sea lion colony in La Paz, this was the last thing he expected to see.

This haunting sound was captured near Bermuda in 1949. It's the oldest known whale song recording
Archivists at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution have uncovered the earliest known whale song recording, taken almost 80 years ago.

"Ultimate ocean travellers": diver in Japan finds tiny animals with tentacles around their mouths
The reef-dwelling creature gave the Brazilian researcher a weird sense of déjà vu. Here's why

Is it ever ok to swim with dolphins?
Swimming with captive dolphins is definitely a no-no, but ‘swim with’ trips with wild animals are a more complex issue, says James Fair

“Beaching here could be lethal.” Dolphins in South Carolina have developed a genius – but deadly – hunting strategy. Watch the tense Attenborough-narrated footage
Younger bottlenose dolphins have been observed stranding themselves on mudbanks – but it’s a risky technique

This strange animal video may be the most oddly satisfying thing you see all day
Sand dollar exoskeletons are often found washed up after the animal has died. But this live individual has put on a hypnotic show that helps calm the mind.

“Seriously underestimated.” Shark experts looked into the eyes of this deep-sea giant and were stunned by what they saw
Researchers have long thought that Greenland sharks have poor vision but a new study reveals the opposite.

"Suddenly one shot to the surface... I'd never seen anything like this before"
A diver in the Maldives was lucky enough to film the exact moment a eagle ray decided to shoot up to the surface in a magnificent breach.

From coral reefs to songbirds, the natural world is losing its colour. Here’s why scientists are worried
Colour is far more than beauty – it's a powerful indicator of ecosystem health. And the planet is losing its hues

It's the size of a small car, weighs as much as an e-bike – and can live for an amazing 100 years...
The biggest crab in the world has a leg span of nearly 4 metres and weighs 13.6kg

It's bigger than a double bed, weighs the same as a scrambler motorbike – and has one deadly sting...
What are the largest jellyfish in the world? And how big can they grow? Stuart Blackman takes a look

It's longer than 4 buses put together, yet only as thick as a coin – and is one deadly predator...
Adrian Barnett explains why the Praya dubia is not just one of the longest predators in the ocean, but one of the most abundant too.

"We saw a severely exhausted humpback whale entangled in rope and chain. It was a heartbreaking sight" Watch remarkable video of an incredible rescue
These whale researchers were looking for their tagging equipment when they found an entangled whale. They knew they had to act – and fast
