NOAA’s 2016 Deepwater Exploration of the Marianas will take please between April 20th and June 10th. You can still catch live streaming of the last leg of the expedition from June 17th to July 10th by visiting their youtube channel (https://www.youtube.com/user/oceanexplorergov) and clicking on one of their live camera feeds (ex. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9n21Pmde9I4).

The full schedule of the expedition is as follows:

Leg 1 (April 20 – May 11): Live streaming of sea floor dives
Leg 2 (May 20 – June 11): Sea floor mapping (No live streaming)
Leg 3 (June 17 – July 10): Live streaming of sea floor dives

Basket Star Population and other Sea Creature Footage: NOAA Office of Ocean Exploration and Research, 2016 Deepwater Exploration of the Marianas

No eyes and fangs!!! What kind of creature did this guy catch???

Unidentified Creature Caught in Malaysia Video: Anuar Pak Tam https://goo.gl/IMkUR6

Other media:
1. Goby 1: Elias Levy
2.Goby 2: Paul Kli
3. Goby 3-5:Klaus Stiefel
4. Mudksippers: Jon Robson
5. Eel Goby Black BG: Yuichi Kano
6. Eel Goby Burrow Video: tomas T. Gonzales et al. 2006
7. Alien Chestburster: Alien Movie 1979

A massive reticulated python was found and caught in Malaysia. Estimated to measure around 8 meters it is up there with one of the largest ever.

Photos and Footage Credit: Malaysian Civil Defense Force
Medusa the Captive Snake Photos Credit: Guinness World Records

So…many..crabs!!!

Pineda, J et al. (2016). A crab swarm at an ecological hotspot: patchiness and population density from AUV observations at a coastal, tropical seamount. PeerJ https://goo.gl/LbyQUQ

Crab Swarm Footage: Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution https://goo.gl/dAljqt

Other Media:
1. Research Team Photo: Ocean Media Institute
2. Submersible Vehicle Photo: Jesús Pineda
3. Swimming Crab Footage: Vantuna Research Group https://goo.gl/jTdKY2
4. Red Crabs Stranding Footage: Mel Kotlyar https://goo.gl/deMWh3

Talk about teeny tiny monkeys. These little primates are so small they can cling to your finger!

It’s about to get sinister! And all kinds of murderous! When this baby cuckoo bird springs to life. Come find out more about this parasitic relationship.

Her name is Deep Blue. She is the biggest great white shark ever filmed in its natural habitat…enough said.

Great White Shark ‘Deep Blue’ Footage © Mauricio Hoyos Padillas
Mauricio Hoyos Facebook https://goo.gl/AeLBG5

Saidi et al. 2005. Capture of a pregnant female white shark, Carcharodon carcharias (Lamnidae) in the Gulf of Gabès (southern Tunisia, central Mediterranean) with comments on oophagy in sharks.

Kabasakal and Gedikoğlu. 2008. Two new-born great white sharks, Carcharodon carcharias (Linnaeus, 1758)(Lamniformes; Lamnidae) from Turkish waters of the north Aegean Sea. Acta Adriat, 49(2), pp.125-135.

Supporting Media:
White Shark Cuba (b&w photo): Wikipedia
Deep Blue Against Boat: Discovery
Pregnant Shark Captured: Saidi et al. 2005
White Shark Embryos: Saidi et al. 2005
White Shark Newborns: Kabasakal and Gedikoğlu
Great White Feeding on Seal: Mauricio Hoyos Padilla

Venture into the tropical jungle to discover a simple bird that takes advantage of one of the most marvelous forms of mimicry. You might not be quite sure if you’re staring at a caterpillar or a bird.

Londoño, G. A., García, D. A., & Sánchez, M. M. (2015). Morphological and behavioral evidence of batesian mimicry in nestlings of a lowland amazonian bird.

Cinereous Mourner Footage: Dano Grayson
Website: http://danograyson.com/

Orange Caterpillar Footage: MrHawkshadow https://goo.gl/oLmejS

Supporting Media:

Hairy Caterpillar Photo: Wendy Valencia

Juvenile Cincerous Mourner Photos: Santiago David Rivera

Capuchin Monkey Photo: Encarna Sáez Goñalons & Víctor Martínez Moll

Ever seen the world’s largest bony fish? This is it, the ocean sunfish and sure it one funky looking creature!

Nakamura, I., Goto, Y., & Sato, K. (2015). Ocean sunfish rewarm at the surface after deep excursions to forage for siphonophores. Journal of Animal Ecology.

Divers Swim with Enormous Sunfish: Miguel Pereira/ViralHog
Ocean Sunfish Eating Jellyfish Sequence: Dr. Itsumi Nakamura
Basking Ocean Sunfish: Eric Shoemaker

The legends are true! It looks like the flying spaghetti monster does really exist…or at least something very similar looking. Check out this rare siphonophore that was discovered through a collaborative effort known as the SERPENT Project.


Flying Spaghetting Moster Footage https://goo.gl/NekSlZ
Courtesy of:
Daniel Jones
SERPENT Project www.serpentproject.com
National Oceanography Centre
BP Exploration (Angola) Limited
Sonangol

Supporting Media...coming soon.