Life in The Deep Sea (2024)

23/02/2023

Cetacean strandings: 104 years of collecting whales
In 1927 Museum staff commandeered trains to transport 126 false killer whales from Scotland to South Kensington.
It's not the most conventional cargo - but staff specialising in cetacean strandings are used to the unorthodox.

23/02/2023

Critically Endangered Yangtze finless porpoise shows signs of recovery
Over 50 billion tonnes of sand is mined every year – and it's pushing species to the brink of extinction.
Researchers found that the Yangtze finless porpoise faced habitat loss and a reduced range as a result of the practice, but a suspension of sand mining offers hope that they could recover.

23/02/2023

Endangered Salmon Regain Access to Healthy West Coast Habitat through 20 Projects Funded by NOAA Fisheries
The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law provides a once-in-a-generation opportunity for NOAA Fisheries to restore access to ancestral habitats for endangered and threatened species in the face of climate change.
The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law is one of the largest funding packages for salmon and steelhead recovery in the last decade. It promises to reopen many miles of crucial spawning and rearing habitat across the West Coast as climate change increases the urgency of recovery actions. These projects will help restore access to healthy habitat for migratory fish through:
- On-the-ground fish passage restoration
- Engineering and design
- Future project development
- Building the capacity of new and existing partners to design projects and manage multi-faceted restoration efforts

23/02/2023

Over half of coral reef cover across the world has been lost since 1950
Coral reefs have declined by over half since the 1950s as they suffer from the effects of climate change and overfishing.
Across the world, the area that coral reefs occupy has fallen by 50% in the half century from 1957. Their ability to carry out key roles, such as food provision and locking away carbon, has fallen too.

21/02/2023

Arctic sponges have been discovered feasting on 3,000-year-old fossils deep below the ocean's surface.
The unique ecosystem is one of the most diverse of the high Arctic, and could represent the first of many to be found under the polar ice cap.

21/02/2023

Ancient shipwreck reveals 'ecological memory' of reefs
An ancient battle fought thousands of years ago has provided an oasis of life on the wrecks it left behind.
A bronze naval ram sunk over two millennia ago was found to host more than 100 species of underwater animals, providing a 'time capsule' of ecosystem changes from antiquity until now.
Though many human lives were lost in the conflict, scientist have now found that these ships provide a record of the animals which have lived under the sea during this time. In total, 114 different invertebrate species were found living together on the ram of a Carthaginian warship.

21/02/2023

Young minke whale freed by rescuers after stranding in the River Thames
A major operation has taken place in London to save a whale that had become stranded in the River Thames.
Rescuers working tirelessly through the night managed to free the whale at about 01.00 before it slipped free and swam off.
People are urged to keep an eye out for the whale, which was last seen off Isleworth and may still be in the river.
Update: Unfortunately, after swimming further up the Thames and deteriorating in condition, the young whale was euthanised to prevent any further suffering.

21/02/2023

The hermit crab has a soft abdomen which it protects by occupying shells left empty by dead sea snails and other animals. However as the hermit crab grows it has to find a larger shell.

The right shell is hard to find and hermit crabs even queue up in size order next to empty shells - each crab is waiting to move into the vacated shell of the larger crab in front of it.

21/02/2023

Hawksbill sea turtles inhabit the tropical and sub-tropical waters of all of the world’s major oceans. Hawksbills get their name from their unique beak-like mouth, which resembles that of a hawk and is perfect for finding food sources in hard-to-reach cracks and crevices. They are the only species of sea turtle that can survive on a diet consisting mainly of sponges. Hawksbill turtles play a key role in the function of marine ecosystems.

In many parts of the world, hawksbills face the unique threat of being hunted for their beautiful shell, also known as “tortoise shell”, which is used by craftspeople to create many types of jewelry and trinkets. The historical hunting and killing of hawksbills for their shell nearly drove the species to extinction. Today, the Convention on International Trade of Endangered Species (CITES) forbids the trade of any turtle products on the international market, including hawksbill tortoise shell, but illegal hunting continues to represent a threat to the species in many parts of the world.

21/02/2023

The green sea turtle is the largest hard-shelled sea turtle. They are unique among sea turtles in that they are herbivores, eating mostly seagrasses and algae. This diet is what gives their fat a greenish color (not their shells), which is where their name comes from.

Green turtles are found throughout the world. They nest in over 80 countries and live in the coastal areas of more than 140 countries. Historically, green turtles were exploited for their fat, meat and eggs, causing global population declines. Many countries, including the United States, prohibit the killing of sea turtles and collection of their eggs. However, in some areas, the killing of green turtles for their meat or to supply shells to the wildlife trafficking trade remains a threat to their recovery. Bycatch in commercial and recreational fishing gear, vessel strikes, loss of nesting habitat from coastal development, and climate change are the biggest threats facing green turtles.

21/02/2023

Cuttlefish are not fish, but molluscs, in common with squids and octopuses. They can change their skin colour and texture to provide camouflage or to communicate with each other.
When hunting the cuttlefish sends shimmering waves of colour along its body to distract or confuse its prey.

21/02/2023

Giant clams are the largest living marine bivalves and typically inhabit tropical coral reefs in coastal regions throughout the Indo-Pacific Ocean. Giant clams are members of the Subfamily Tridacninae, which consists of two genera: Hippopus and Tridacna.

20/02/2023

【Feather stars are the closest thing we have to walking plants】
These strange, plant-like creatures hide in plain sight among bright corals and anemones, firmly anchored to the sea floor, as their slender, branching limbs billow like colourful fern fronds.
These are crinoids, members of the echinoderm family that also includes sea stars. Those that lose their stalks become known as feather stars. Feather stars can still anchor themselves to rocks and substrate if they need to, using a set of tiny legs called cirri.
Just look at these things:
📷 Robert Hechler/Jim Auzins/Nhobgood/Roaring Earth

20/02/2023

Belfast Lough fisherman lands rare blue lobster
A fisherman has described landing a rare blue lobster in Belfast Lough as the catch of a lifetime. He released the lobster after taking pictures of it as it was just below the allowable size to keep.
According to Marine biologists, the odds of catching one of these lobsters are about one in two million and unusual colourations are due to abnormal genetics. A genetic difference can causes some lobsters to produce more of a certain protein than others.
📷 Stuart Brown

20/02/2023

Cyprus probes washed up dead whales, earthquake link possible
A number of whales have washed up dead on the northern shores of Cyprus, authorities said, possibly affected by the massive earthquakes in neighbouring Turkey and Syria.
Of the 10 whales found beached, seven were dead and the other three were guided back to sea.
Authorities said whales have an echolocation system which is affected by sea noise; it could be military exercises, seismic drills or naturally the earthquake in the region.
📷 AFP

20/02/2023

【👀Purple jellyfishes found on Indonesian beach】
A man found stranded purple jellyfishes or crown jellyfishes floating on Palu Bay Beach, Central Sulawesi, Indonesia.
Dozens of jellyfish between 30cm and 60cm in diameter that usually live in the deep seas around the Pacific and East Atlantic Seas are thought to be carried by strong winds and ocean currents other than due to climate change factors.
📷 Basri Marzuki/NurPhoto

20/02/2023

Do sea slugs have eyes?
Other slugs turn when you get in front of them with a camera. Does that mean they can actually see the diver with a camera and quickly turn not to get blinded by the flashes?
So, yes, sea slugs do have eyes, all of them. Some are visable, some cannot be made out as easily. Luckily they do which gives many of them a cute face we humans can associate with and there is slugs that look absolutely adorable like sheep or bunnies.
The cells of the eye tissue are sensitive to light and a primitive optic nerve transmits the information to the brain. This allows them to make out shadows to help them to know if a predator is near and to give them a basic idea about the surrounding. However, that is about it. They cannot actually see. As the sea slug expert Bill Rudman states: „It seems a shame with all their beautiful shapes and colours that they can’t see each other.“
The eyes are embedded in the skin and not on a stalk like we know it from their relatives on land. For some species the eyes are even further under the skin covered by an unpigmented patch that allows light to pass through to the light sensitive cells.

20/02/2023

Hydrothermal vents: survival at the ocean's hot springs
Hydrothermal vents, located on the seafloor, release a fluid that has been superheated within the Earth's crust. But despite this heat, the surrounding environment is a perfect habitat for a range of organisms.
Dr Maggie Georgieva, a vent researcher at the Museum, explains how the vent sites help some animal communities survive and thrive in the cold, dark depths of the deep sea.
'While these fluids are hot, they tend to cool very quickly as they mix with seawater,' explains Maggie. 'The vent might be very hot, but when you move away from it a little, you can have a temperature of 20°C or so, which is quite nice for lots of animals.'

20/02/2023

Fishes of the deep sea
Beneath the ocean's crushing blackness lies an ecosystem that has learned to thrive without sunlight or warmth.
It's a world full of organisms with unique adaptations to such a challenging environment.

20/02/2023

Can sea snakes bite humans?
It is often said that a sea snake can only bite humans in the thin skin between the fingers or in the ears as its mouth is too small to grab anything else. This story took away the fear of sea snakes from many new scuba divers (and probably some experienced ones too). But is it true or just a myth?
Scuba divers often hear during their open water courses that the snakes are not dangerous for humans as their mouth is too small to bite us. I was told this as well. And I heard this over and over again. I did not question it till I saw a documentary of pearl farmers who are at risk of getting bitten by exactly this banded sea snake that I was told cannot bite.
So workers at pearl farms as well as fishermen do get bitten. The snakes get entangled in fishing nets or hide in the crates where the pearls grow. They then feel threatened when taken out of the sea and bite in self-defense. But – they can’t bite humans, correct?
No, not correct. Sea snakes can indeed bite humans. To swallow their prey, which can be more than twice the size of its neck, the snake has to be able to open its mouth widely. It can obviously do so as well to bite in defense.

17/02/2023

It’s Time to Act FAST for Turtles
“Fishers are some of our best partners in conservation,” said Irene Kelly, sea turtle recovery coordinator for the NOAA Fisheries Pacific Islands Regional Office. “They have a lot of deep knowledge about our marine resources and fishing. They don’t want to accidentally hook a turtle or a seal.”
But how can you avoid catching a turtle while fishing? Fortunately, there are several actions— suggested by fishermen—that you can take to help prevent snagging a turtle. It starts with knowing a bit about turtles’ eating behavior.
Honu are the only herbivorous species of sea turtles—they feed mainly on algae and seagrass, primarily during the day. But they may develop an acquired taste for dead fish or squid if they are exposed to these items. It’s important to refrain from tossing old bait or fish scraps into the water.
Fishing with live bait between sunset and sunrise and keeping your bait and discarded fish scraps away from turtles can help make your fishing activity less enticing. Check your bait often, and relocate your gear away from curious turtles.
These steps can help prevent an accidental hooking a turtle, but line entanglement is the greatest problem for turtles.
“The line, not the hook, is the most damaging and deadly to turtles,” Kelly said, explaining that fishing line can hurt and kill sea turtles in several ways, such as by strangulation, flipper amputation, and drowning. “We’ve seen this firsthand far too many times.”
One type of gear we’ve seen over the past few years that is a major threat to sea turtles is fishing with braided lines, often used with drones. These lines are very strong and can entangle an animal quickly!
“We would save many sea turtles and significantly reduce flipper amputation surgeries if fishermen would avoid using braided lines,” Kelly said.

17/02/2023

Fishermen are cutting off the beaks of endangered albatrosses
Some fishermen targeting tuna, swordfish and halibut in the southwest Atlantic are cutting the beaks off live albatrosses to free them from hooks, before tossing the birds back into the ocean to die.
Some fisheries are not employing these techniques, and are instead taking a blade to the bill of these seabirds, including those that are considered to be endangered such as the northern royal albatross and the spectacled petrel.
Despite longlining occurring in much of the world's oceans this particularly brutal practice appears to be very localised.
'We put out a call out around the world for anyone who had any records of this kind of mutilation,' says Alex. 'The only places that came back with these cases were from the south-west Atlantic, so off the coasts of Brazil, Uruguay, Argentina and one or two from Chile.
'It could not be one group of people, just because of the sheer geographic and temporal extent.'
They found records of bills being cut off in eight different species of seabirds. The amount of damage ranged from either the top or lower bill having been removed to the entire beak having been removed, with the earliest record being from 1999.
Reports came in showed both of live birds with no bills spotted at sea, alongside sightings of dead birds on beaches.

17/02/2023

Greenland polar bears have learned to hunt without sea ice
A group of newly-discovered polar bears may reveal how the Arctic mammals could survive climate change.
Using glacial ice to hunt, rather than sea ice, these bears might inform how these animals can buffer themselves against the worst effects of rising temperatures.
Polar bears living in southeast Greenland were able to hunt seals from chunks of freshwater ice breaking off the island's glaciers, rather than pack ice forming at sea. As pack ice becomes less common, this could allow the population to persist for the foreseeable future.
While the sea ice may allow these polar bears to persist longer than other populations, the group's isolation and small size could drive them towards extinction.
The majority of the polar bear's diet is made up of seals. The bears generally lie in wait for a seal to surface when they come up to breathe before striking, but have also been known to charge slow-moving prey such as walruses.
This way of hunting relies on ice. Polar bears will typically wait by holes in the ice or break into seal birth lairs just under the surface to catch the seals. As global temperatures rise, however, shrinking sea ice reduces access to their preferred prey.
While there is some evidence that polar bears are adapting to other food sources, such as reindeer and seabirds, these are unlikely to be enough to maintain the species at its current population size.
The continuing decline of sea ice has seen the bears classified as Vulnerable to extinction, with a 70% chance that their populations will decline by a third in the next 30 years.

17/02/2023

The largest ever penguin species has been discovered in New Zealand
Two new species of giant penguin have been described from fossils found on a New Zealand beach.
One species, Kumimanu fordycei, weighed an estimated 150 kilogrammes and is currently thought to be one of the largest penguins ever.
Giant penguins once roamed the seas and beaches of New Zealand over 50 million years ago.
Weighing about the same as a giant panda, and heavier than even the largest bird alive today, Kumimanu fordycei would have been a graceful giant as it swam through the oceans.
Around 20 million years ago, however, they vanished from the fossil record. While it's not entirely certain what led to their demise, the arrival of new predators might be to blame.

17/02/2023

Grey seals filmed clapping underwater for the first time
A sound made by grey seals that was thought to have been a vocalisation is actually produced by male seals clapping their hands underwater.
No other marine mammals are known to make sounds in this way.
Grey seals are highly social animals, living in colonies of up to thousands of individuals. They make a number of vocalisations to communicate with each other, and it has now been shown that they will also clap their hand-like forelimbs together to make an cracking sound.
With the short, sharp sound cutting through any background hubbub while underwater, it's thought that these noises are used as a form of display for rival males in the area and any females who may be close by.

17/02/2023

Can sponges cure cancer?
Sponges are unsung heroes for thousands living with chronic illnesses, and they may have the potential to help many more.
There are over 9,000 described species of sponge (Porifera) living in the ocean, from the intertidal zone all the way down to the abyss.
These animals have long been providing for their underwater ecosystems, but now humans are also using their chemicals. From harnessing their antibacterial qualities to treating diseases like cancer and HIV, scientists are considering sponges as a viable natural source of medicine.
A colony of sea sponges can pump as much as 1,000 Olympic-sized swimming pools worth of water every day
Sponges play a vital role in the oceanic ecosystem, filtering water and providing structures for organisms to hide in or lay their eggs on.
'They also recycle a lot of organic material, so they're really important for the carbon cycle.'
One species that has been used to great effect is Tectitethya crypta, which has been studied since the 1950s. The first anti-leukaemia drug was developed from two chemicals found in this sponge.
These chemicals are also part of the breakthrough drug azidothymidine (AZT), which was first administered in the 1980s to people living with HIV.
Sponges are an important part of the marine ecosystem. They provide a home and food to a large number of animals living in all regions of the ocean.

17/02/2023

Dredged from the deep: huge donation of specimens arrives from the ocean floor
Thousands of ocean animal specimens have joined the Museum's collections, including a group of rare anglerfish.
Collected during a Foreign Office-funded research trip earlier this year, the acquisition includes deep-sea anglerfish and 11,000 crustacean specimens, in addition to 81 cephalopods, including a piglet squid, a jewelled squid and a vampire squid.
'The anglerfish are particularly exciting because they are in beautiful condition, and from an area of ocean, the mid-South Atlantic, that we don’t have much material from in the Museum collections.'

17/02/2023

How long can whales hold their breath?

The longest ever recorded dive by a whale was made by a Cuvier's beaked whale. It lasted 222 minutes and broke the record for diving mammals. Other whales can also hold their breath for a very long time. A s***m whale can spend around 90 minutes hunting underwater before it has to come back to the surface to breathe. In 1969, a male s***m whale was killed off the coast of South Africa after surfacing from a dive lasting 117 minutes.

Whales' lungs are particularly efficient at taking up oxygen when they breathe air in and out through their blowholes at the water's surface. Special adaptations help them hold their breath for a long time.

16/02/2023

Fighting for mates may be a behaviour that dates back over 400 million years.
A unique specimen suggests that male Walliserops trilobites fought each other using trident-like structures to win the opportunity to mate with females.

16/02/2023

Octopus ancestor with 10 arms named after President Joe Biden
A cephalopod which roamed the oceans hundreds of millions of years ago has been named after the president of the USA.
The fossil octopus, uncovered in Montana, suggests that the ancestor of all squid and octopus had 10 arms, with some of these then lost by its descendants.

16/02/2023

Seals have highly sensitive whiskers that enable them to hunt effectively even in poor visual conditions. Their specially shaped whiskers can detect the disturbances left by other creatures moving through the water, even while they are moving themselves.

16/02/2023

There are over 500 species of shark living in waters around the world and the majority give birth to live young. The remainder are oviparous, meaning they lay eggs.

16/02/2023

How do oysters make pearls?

Pearls are made by marine oysters and freshwater mussels as a natural defence against an irritant such as a parasite entering their shell or damage to their fragile body.

The oyster or mussel slowly secretes layers of aragonite and conchiolin, materials that also make up its shell. This creates a material called nacre, also known as mother-of-pearl, which encases the irritant and protects the mollusc from it.

When pearls are cultured commercially an irritant is manually inserted into a mollusc to promote the production of mother-of-pearl.

Nacre can form naturally around almost any irritant that gets inside the shell, creating some very unique and precious pearls.

Other bivalve molluscs and gastropods can produce pearls, but these aren't made of nacre.

16/02/2023

What do killer whales eat?

Killer whales (also called orcas) are apex predators, meaning they are at the top of their food chain. They feed on fish and squid like other odontocetes (toothed whales) do, but will also target seals, sea birds and even whale species far bigger than themselves. Killer whales are also the only known predators of great white sharks.

Killer whales are the largest dolphin species. They are highly social and spend most of their lives swimming in large pods of family members. Hunting techniques are passed down through generations, so their diets depend on the region they inhabit and the pod's approach to hunting.

These highly intelligent cetaceans have been documented creating large waves to wash seals off ice floes, and even intentionally beaching themselves to catch prey on the shore.

16/02/2023

Ever wondered why boxfish are box-shaped? Here some facts about those absolutely cute slow-moving fish.
Boxfish don’t seem to be very streamlined. However, researchers proved otherwise by creating boxfish models and observing the water movement around them.
The square or triangular shape is defined by a shell-like bony structure called carapace.
The carapace consists of fused plates and covers most of the body with holes only for eyes, mouth and fins.
The hard body makes them inedible for most fish, in addition some boxfish can secrete a deadly poison from their skin to the surrounding water protecting them even better from predators.
Boxfish are closely related to puffer- and filefish.
Cowfish are spiky versions of boxfish which have horn-like shaped structures on their head.

15/02/2023

Bumphead parrotfish
Bumpheads or humpheads are the biggest members of the family of the parrotfish with a size of up to 1.5 m and a weight of 75 kg. They can live for 40 years. Each bumphead parrotfish ingests an estimated amount of 5 to 6 tonnes of structural reef carbonates per year, almost half being living corals.
Bumphead parrotfish are mostly found in schools of up to 100 individuals cruising along reefs producing clouds of sand around them. They are born as females and only become males if the dominant male leaves the group or dies.
Most parrotfish are nibbling off algae from coral and rocks with their beak-like teeth (hence the name). Doing this they break off pieces of coral together with the algae. The particles which cannot be digested are discarded into the ocean as sand grains.
This works differently for the bumpheads as they actually eat coral. With their heads they bump into coral, bite smaller pieces off and finally grind these using their pharyngeal teeth in the throat. The small pieces go directly to the digestive tract as there is no stomach. The nutrients are absorbed and everything else is released as sand.

15/02/2023

The best actor of the ocean – mimic octopus
The mimic octopus is known for its ability to imitate objects or animals from its surroundings like flounder, jelly fish, sting ray, sea snake, lionfish or just a rock/coral.
To mimic other creatures the mimic octopus changes its skin color and texture. The color change is possible through special pigment containing cells, the cromatophores. These specialized cells are used by many other animals including chameleons.
In addition to the color changes the mimic octopus adapts swimming movement, speed, position in the water column and body shape. Quite clever it seems. It would be great to know if they are born with this ability or if they have to learn it first.

15/02/2023

Only recently discovered, T. saurophagis was the size of a school bus, reaching nearly 30 feet (9m) long. It is an early species of ichthyosaur that lived during the Triassic period, 244 million years ago. Because they were alive shortly after the Permian extinction (Earth’s largest mass extinction, when 95% of marine life is thought to have been wiped out), its discovery is giving scientists new insights into the quick recovery of the ecosystem.

15/02/2023

【Deep sea mining noise poses harm to blue whales, scientists warn】
Deep sea mining could be doing irreparable damage to blue whales and other rare marine creatures, scientists have warned.
A peer-reviewed paper published by the University of Exeter and Greenpeace Research Laboratories focuses on the overlap between cetaceans (such as whales, dolphins and porpoises) and target sites for deep sea mining, especially in the Pacific Ocean. The authors warn that urgent research is needed to assess threats to these mammals.
The research, published in Frontiers in Marine Science, finds that noise pollution in particular could cause damage to the sensitive, intelligent animals.
📷 CFP

14/02/2023

Coelacanths: the fish that 'outdid' the Loch Ness Monster
In April 1939, New Zealand's Auckland Star proclaimed that the Loch Ness monster, a sensation that had caught the world's attention not long prior, had been 'outdone'.
Making up for the world's disappointment that there wasn't a prehistoric creature living in a Scottish loch was the South African discovery of a strange, steel blue fish with limb-like fins.
The fish was a coelacanth, one of a group that was thought to have gone extinct 70 million years earlier. But this one was alive.
The living West Indian Ocean coelacanth reaches up to two metres long and 100 kilograms. It's typically found 90-300 metres below the surface, in waters 18°C and below. The fish shelter in caves during the day and venture out at night to hunt cuttlefish, squid and fish. It has been suggested that they have a lifespan of 100 years.

23/02/2023

23/02/2023

23/02/2023

23/02/2023

21/02/2023

21/02/2023

21/02/2023

21/02/2023

21/02/2023

21/02/2023

21/02/2023

21/02/2023

20/02/2023

20/02/2023

20/02/2023

20/02/2023

20/02/2023

20/02/2023

20/02/2023

20/02/2023

17/02/2023

17/02/2023

17/02/2023

17/02/2023

17/02/2023

17/02/2023

17/02/2023

17/02/2023

16/02/2023

16/02/2023

16/02/2023

16/02/2023

16/02/2023

16/02/2023

16/02/2023

15/02/2023

15/02/2023

15/02/2023

15/02/2023

14/02/2023

Address

Website

Alerts

Shortcuts

Share