Inside Ocean

12/10/2022

The Parrotfish owes its name to teeth joined in a structure similar to a beak and the stunning colors of their skin.

Close relatives of the wrasse, Parrotfish are abundant in and around the tropical reefs of all the world's oceans.

12/10/2022

The Camouflaged stonefish has two highly prized tools to help keep it safe in the fight for survival in the ocean.

The strange-looking fish is a master at blending into its rocky surroundings, while it is also considered the world's most venomous fish.

12/09/2022

Even though it has been mostly mentioned in the context of fiction in recent times, we still do not have actual proof on whether the legendary underwater city of Atlantis was real or not. Many believe that the city was real and that it was already discovered, right near the island of Delos in Greece.

There are signs of a planned town there, with multiple courtyards and buildings still preserved underwater. However, others are not convinced that that is the real Atlantis. And of course, there is the third group that believes that the entire story is just a fictional allegory. Where do you stand?

12/08/2022

MUSA, a large underwater museum that consists of 500 humanmade statues, sits not far off the coast of Cancun, Mexico. Curious travelers can explore the impressive feats via scuba dive trips or glass-bottom boat tours.

12/08/2022

Seventy percent of the Earth’s surface is below the ocean, but although the ocean has been mapped, only large details (of three miles or more in length) can be properly seen – this means that 95% of our oceans remain hidden.

It’s little wonder, then, that the oceans continue to throw up surprises. Recent discoveries have included a new shark (Genie’s dogfish) and perhaps the longest animal ever recorded – a 47-metre-long Apolemia (jellyfish), discovered earlier this year by Australian scientists.

12/07/2022

HMS Daedalus was a Royal Navy Warship whose crew supposedly saw a humongous sea serpent in 1848. Not only did they see it, but they also claimed they were watching it for over 20 minutes, and described it as an enormous snake, over 100 feet long, that had a dragon’s head.

The crew of the brig Daphne spotted the creature a second time. They tried following the giant snake and even shot at it, but lost it at sea. Today it is believed that what they saw was a whale, but many are unconvinced by that theory.

12/07/2022

Strangely enough, this form of sea life is neither a squid, nor an octopus, despite its appearance. Scientists have designated the vampire squid as a completely separate animal, even though it has eight arms and two tentacles.

Again, the name can be confounding—these creatures don’t suck blood and actually are pretty passive hunters, considering they’re filter feeders. Instead, the name comes from the skin between its arms, which resembles a cape. Oh yeah, and this little dude lives in the pitch black waters of the mesopelagic zone.

12/06/2022

Found along the southwestern coast of Australia, the leafy seadragon, Phycodurus eques, uses its fins not only to propel itself through the water, but as camouflage to resemble a piece of drifting seaweed.

Because they have pretty big heads compared to the rest of their body, leafy seadragons are able to concentrate pressure at their mouth to suck in prey. Similar to seahorses and pipefishes, the males carry around fertilized eggs. But without a special pouch, the leafy seadragon carries the eggs beneath its tail.

12/06/2022

This furry-clawed crab looks so unusual that when scientists discovered it 5,000 feet deep on a hydrothermal vent south of Easter Island, they designated it not only a new genus, Kiwa, but a new family, Kiwidae—both named for the mythological Polynesian goddess of shellfish. It’s likely blind and may use bacteria in its furry claws to detoxify its food.

12/06/2022

Strangely enough, this form of sea life is neither a squid, nor an octopus, despite its appearance. Scientists have designated the vampire squid as a completely separate animal, even though it has eight arms and two tentacles.

Again, the name can be confounding—these creatures don’t suck blood and actually are pretty passive hunters, considering they’re filter feeders. Instead, the name comes from the skin between its arms, which resembles a cape. Oh yeah, and this little dude lives in the pitch black waters of the mesopelagic zone.

12/05/2022

These guys are native to chilly, deep waters and can grow to be quite large; in 2010, a remotely operated underwater vehicle discovered a giant isopod measuring 2.5 feet. These crustaceans, which sort of resemble a massive woodworm, are carnivores and usually feed on dead animals that fall down from the ocean’s surface.

Despite their discovery back in 1879, these creatures mostly remain a mystery. However, it’s believed that giant isopods grow so large in order to withstand the pressure at the bottom of the sea.

12/05/2022

Years before the discovery of the perplexing circles on its seabed, southern Japan was the site of another ocean mystery. Plato’s mythical city of Atlantis has inspired a number of stories about lost civilisations under the sea.

One of the most recent, and most intriguing, was spurred on by the discovery of the atmospheric ‘Yonaguni Monument’ in 1986 by a local Japanese diver. The sandstone ‘monument’ has an impressive symmetrical form, including what look like steps.

A number of people – including academics – have concluded that the structure is man-made. However, a number of other experts pointed to the similarity between the monument and nearby land formations, with Boston University natural sciences professor Robert Shoch pointing out that sandstone breaks into straight edges and so gives the illusion of deliberate construction.

12/05/2022

In 2011, a group of divers looking for treasure and salvage in the Baltic Sea took a sonar image of a 70-metre-long and steely-looking object lying 300 feet below sea level.

Some claimed that ‘The Baltic Sea Anomaly’, as it came to be known, was a UFO, its resemblance to the Millennium Falcon in Star Wars fuelling that speculation.

Others said it was the remains of a lost city. When scientists looked further into the anomaly, they came to the conclusion that it was a huge glacial deposit left over from the thawing glaciers that carved out much of the Baltic Sea basin.

12/04/2022

Researchers with the Census of Marine Zooplankton first discovered the squidworm in 2007 during a cruise in a remotely operated vehicle some 1.8 miles underwater.

The funky-looking fish is named for the 10 appendages protruding from its head, which look like tentacles. The squidworm uses these to collect debris falling from the open waters above, known as “marine snow.”

12/04/2022

Scientists found this strange creature at the Great Barrier Reef’s Lizard Island and named it, aptly, the Christmas tree worm. The spiral “branches” are actually the worm’s breathing and feeding apparatuses, while the worm itself lives in a tube.

These tree-like crowns are covered in hair-like appendages called radioles. These are used for breathing and catching prey, but they can be withdrawn if the Christmas tree worm feels threatened.

12/04/2022

The frilled shark, Chlamydoselachus anguineus, is one of the gnarliest looking creatures in the sea. If it looks like an ancient beast, that’s because it is: the prehistoric creature’s roots go back 80 million years.

The frilled shark can grow to about seven feet long and is named for the frilly appearance of its gills. Although shark in name, these animals swim in a distinctly serpentine fashion, much like an eel. They mostly feed on squid, usually swallowing their prey whole.

12/04/2022

With over 3,000 different species on record, the nudibranch is an extremely versatile kind of sea slug. These little guys are found pretty much everywhere, in both shallow and deep waters, from the North and South poles and into the tropics.

There are two distinct kinds: dorid nudibranchs, which are smooth with feather-like gills on their back to help them breathe; and aeolid nudibranchs, which breath through a different kind of organ, also located on their backs, called cerata.

Because the tiny nudibranch lacks a shell, it instead protects itself with bright camouflage, meant as a warning signal. But perhaps their wildest adaptation of all is the ability to quite literally swallow, digest, and reuse stinging cells from prey.

12/04/2022

Usually seen nestled into burrows around coral reefs, the ribbon eel (sometimes called the leaf-nosed moray eel) lives in Indonesian waters from East Africa, to southern Japan, Australia, and French Polynesia.

The juveniles start out black, with a pale yellow strip along the fins, and as they grow, transitions to a bright blue and yellow coloring. These eels are considered “protrandic hermaphrodites,” meaning they change s*x from male to female several times throughout their lives.

12/04/2022

This brightly colored sea-dweller, dubbed the Halitrephes Massi jellyfish, lives in the Eastern Pacific Ocean and is rarely seen by humans. So, what's behind its stunning array of colors? Canals that move nutrients through the jellyfish's body reflect light to make this brilliant display.

12/03/2022

Some of the most significant scientific inventions—penicillin, gunpowder, the microwave — were discovered by accident. Now a group of researchers investigating how some animals live in the freezing Arctic have another to tack on the list: natural antifreeze.

12/03/2022

Glowing alien squid

12/03/2022

A huge amount of the deep sea is still unknown to us. Take a look at some of the bizarre animals that live down there…

A huge amount of the deep sea is still unknown to us. Take a look at some of the bizarre animals that live down there... While the ocean remains largely unexplored, we occasionally get a glimpse of the weird and wonderful creatures that eke out a living in the deep (like the ever-popular blobfish).....

11/25/2022

The Earth's briny waters are full of life—some of it is truly strange and mysterious-looking.

1 / 13 About 5,000 species of crustaceans in the order Isopoda live in Earth’s oceans. According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), they all have two pairs of antennae, compound eyes, and four sets of jaws. Their seven-segmented bodies have seven sets of legs for walkin...

11/25/2022

Which large creature has a toothy smile, a surprising family tree, and a name inspired by a piece of dishware?

I stumbled upon this creature when looking at various crocodiles and alligators, marveling with a friend at how funky reptiles can be (a typical Saturday night activity, naturally). I was captivated by the long snout and wide eyes that give this croc such a unique face. And in delving into articles....

11/25/2022

Researchers with the Census of Marine Zooplankton first discovered the squidworm in 2007 during a cruise in a remotely operated vehicle some 1.8 miles underwater. The funky-looking fish is named for the 10 appendages protruding from its head, which look like tentacles. The squidworm uses these to collect debris falling from the open waters above, known as “marine snow.”

11/24/2022

What psychedelic sea creature is known for its amazing array of colors, its creative survival tactics, and its wide dietary range that even includes its own kind?

I first became acquainted with nudibranchs due to a fellow nature lover in my life. A few months ago, my girlfriend told me she was heading to New York to get two new tattoos, a turkey tail mushroom and a nudibranch (I know, what a nerd). While I was familiar with the fungus, a common

11/24/2022

A 48ft-long sea creature, with a hard shell on its back and a human-like head, is said to have once washed up on a beach after a pair of boys stumbled across the beast.

A huge creature with a 'human-like-head' was discovered washed up on a UK beach. The 48ft-long sea creature, with a hard shell on its back and a human-like head, is said to have once washed up on a beach. The unknown beast, which dates back to the 1700s and is described as having green eyes,

11/24/2022

Internet sleuths have been trying to work out what a mysterious sea creature could be after the long, greyish animal washed up on an Irish beach and shocked beachgoers

A mysterious sea creature dubbed the “forbidden churro” that washed up on a beach in Ireland has left redditors perplexed. A walker who stumbled upon the strange creature that looks like the deep fried Mexican treat, posted a picture asking users to help identify it. The answers ranged from sill...

11/23/2022

Drew Lambert came across the odd discovery during a jog on Australia's Bondi Beach and posted a video of the creature on Facebook in hopes of identifying the find

A creature that washed up on an Australian beach has left many scratching their heads. According to Storyful, on April 5, Drew Lambert discovered a strange-looking animal washed up on the shore of Australia's Bondi Beach during a jog. Lambert took a video of the odd find and posted it on Facebook, c...

11/23/2022

These animals have unique and unusual ways to live in a difficult environment.

The dark, cold, high-pressure environment of the deep ocean has created a diversity of marine life with little resemblance to the shallower animals we are much more familiar with. While deep-sea creatures have adapted many different ways to live in the deep ocean—such as light organs, missing eyes...