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Dive into these 19 gorgeous, award winning photos showcasing life under the sea

Underwater life is weird and wonderful.

©Renee Capozzola/UPY 2018.

A healthy shark population swims at sunset in Moorea, French Polynesia.

Heads up, Ariel: There's something positively mind-blowing going on under the sea.

These absolutely gorgeous photographs once made a big splash in the international Underwater Photographer of the Year competition for 2018. The annual contest showcases more than 100 of the world's best photos captured in oceans, lakes, rivers, and even swimming pools. With winners in 11 categories, including portraits, wide-angle, and wrecks, the competition brings out seasoned professionals and rising stars in this beautiful — albeit somewhat soggy — hobby.

Underwater photography greats Peter Rowlands, Martin Edge, and Alex Mustard judged more than 5,000 entries to crown the winners. Here are 19 of the best, including Tobias Friedrich's "Cycle War," the image named photograph of the year.

1. Just when you thought you'd seen every fish in the sea...

Two fighting anthias in Tulamben, Bali.

©Anders Nyberg/UPY 2018

2. ... something swims by and surprises you.

A juvenile grouper hides inside a pink sponge in the Jardines de la Reina reefs on the south coast of Cuba.

©Nicholas More/UPY 2018

3. Like, really surprises you.

Get a room you two!

blennies, kissing, fighting fish, exhibit

Actually, these tompot blennies aren't kissing; they're in a fierce battle in Swanage Pier, U.K.

©Henley Spires/UPY 2018.

4. It's bold and colorful down there.

wrasse fish, The United Kingdom, oceans, award winner

A male corkwing wrasse appears in Bovisand Harbor, Plymouth, U.K.

©Kirsty Andrews/UPY 2018

5. Busy and beautiful too. (Even when it's a bit intimidating.)

sand tiger sharks, docile, North Carolina, Ocean

The underbelly of a docile sand tiger shark and a large school of "bait fish" in North Carolina.

©Tanya Houppermans/UPY 2018

6. And on its best days, underwater life is a weird and wonderful combination of all of the above.

Haven't we all been stuck inside a jellyfish at one point in our lives? Hang in there, buddy.

Phillippines, Darwinism, ecosystem, environment

A juvenile trevally is wedged between the tentacles and bell of a jellyfish in Janao Bay, Philippines.

©Scott Gutsy Tuason/UPY 2018

7. The photographers were able to capture some totally delightful surprises...

crabs, Finland, rivers, nature, photography competition

A crab feeds in the Vuoksi River, Finland.

©Mika Saareila/UPY 2018

8. ...like this haunting dance of fierce predators...

bull shark, deep sea, Mozambique, geography

Bull sharks swim in the deep blue sea of Ponta Del Ouro, Mozambique.

©Sylvie Ayer/UPY 2018.

9. ...and these graceful, lithe swans that look a little more like lovebirds.

Swans feed in the waters of Loch Lomand, Scotland.

©Grant Thomas/UPY 2018

10. It doesn't get much more impressive than this commanding humpback whale saying hello.

humpback whale, water mammals, gigantic animals, Tonga

A humpback whale assumes the "spy hopping" posture in Vavau, Tonga.

©Greg Lecoeur/UPY 2018

11. But then you see this micro seahorse captured with a macro lens and remember that size isn't everything.

Japanese seahorse, blending, hiding, pink,

A Japanese pygmy seahorse blends in to its surroundings in Kashiwajima, Japan.

©TianHong Wang/UPY 2018.

12. There's this sweet sea lion, who could teach a masterclass on the perfect selfie.

sea lions, Australia, endangered, nature

A sea lion poses for the camera in Julien Bay, Australia.

©Greg Lecoeur/UPY 2018

13. And so could this Asiatic cormorant, who made sure to show off its good side.

underwater birds, predator, fishing, Japan

The elegant bird dives for fish in Osezaki, Japan.

©Filippo Borghi/UPY 2018

14. And we can't leave out this "otter-ly" adorable little swimmer.

An Asian small-clawed otter swims during a training session before it's released back into the wild.

©Robert Marc Lehmann/UPY 2018

15. Though sea creatures aren't the only ones making a life down below.

wreckage, sea diving, scuba, black and white photography

The ex-USS Kittiwake sat upright in the waters of Grand Cayman for more than 250 years before surge from a hurricane knocked it over.

©Susannah H. Snowden-Smith/UPY 2018

16. Humans can't help but experience the thrills....

surfing, musician, celebrity, Fiji, ocean waves

Musician and surfer Donavon Frankenreiter enjoys the waves in Tavarua, Fiji.

©Rodney Bursiel/UPY 2018

17. ...and chills of life in the big blue sea.

This haunting image is "Cycle War," by Tobias Friedrich, winner of the Underwater Photograph of the Year.

"Cycle War" is a haunting image and winner of the Underwater Photograph of the year, 2018.

©Tobias Friedrich/UPY 2018

The photograph captures motorcycles on a truck on the frequently photographed wreckage of the SS Thistlegorm off the coast of Egypt in the Red Sea. Of this winning entry, contest judge Peter Rowlands said, "It is of a subject which has been photographed literally thousands of times. The artistic skill is to visualize such an image and the photographic talent is to achieve it. Perfectly lit and composed, I predict that there will never be a better shot of this subject from now on."

18. But it turns out humans have left a lot of vehicles down there.

This car went through the ice of Finland's Saimaa lake, but no one was hurt.

Always remember where you parked!

©Pekka Tuuri/UPY 2018

19. But you can't really blame those people for getting a little too close to the breathtaking beauty of life underwater.

And more importantly, who would want to?

2018 winning images - Underwater Photographer of the Year

shark population, French Polynesia, travel, adventure

A healthy shark population swims at sunset in Moorea, French Polynesia.

©Renee Capozzola/UPY 2018.

This article originally appeared on 03.07.18

nature

Science

Seahorses have one of the coolest origin stories of all life on Earth

One of the ocean's worst swimmers has managed to adventure across the world.

Photo by David Clode on Unsplash

How did seahorses spread across the globe if they can't swim well?

We all know that seahorses are some of the most unique and fascinating creatures that Mother Nature has to offer.

For one thing, they’re gorgeous. Who has ever looked at a seahorse, with all its vivid colors and delicate, otherworldly shapes and gone, meh? No one, I tell you.

Plus they’re basically the mascot for cool, supportive dads everywhere. Not every creature in the animal kingdom can say that.

Yet, for as much as we know about the seahorse, there are even more thrilling stories swimming around—particularly when it comes to how it got here in the first place.

A video published by PBS Eons explains that today, seahorses are found in all of the world's oceans. And yet, they are pretty terrible swimmers. So how on Earth could they have traveled such far distances to spread across the globe?

As it turns out, the answer is possibly hiding even further below the surface.

Throughout at least the last 55 million years, the ocean floor around southeast Asia has been whirling with tectonic plate activity, with the most important shift happening at the end of the Cenozoic era.

As deep channels between continents became more shallow and surfaces were thrust upward toward the sun, more aquatic plant life was able to grow and expand. Experts think that meadows of seagrass in particular helped ancient seahorses travel away from the waters of the Indonesian region (where they likely originated) and across the world. Yep, just like land horses, seahorses wildly gallop into unknown terrain. Actually, they prefer to simply hold onto traveling seaweed and raft into unknown terrain. Still majestic though.

You can watch the full video here:

How Plate Tectonics Gave Us Seahorses

The surge in seagrass might have even caused seahorses to trade in the long, horizontal shape of most traditional fish for their signature upright posture. As the video explains, the grass beds might have supported their ambush hunting technique, allowing them to obtain a longer reach and blend in with the grass blades before striking. Ambush hunting seems OK for a seahorse, but kind of terrifying if you think of land horses doing the same thing. Thank goodness the latter are herbivores.

PBS Eons is a virtual treasure trove of lesser known evolutionary stories. Its YouTube channel covers everything from the domestication history of cats to why we have 10 toes. If you’re looking to go down the coolest educational rabbit hole ever, you can check out its videos here.

From Your Site Articles

video

Nature

'Whale nerd' zoologist says 'mind completely blown' filming 1,000 fin whales in one spot

Conor Ryan/Twitter

Zoologist and photographer Conor Ryan spotted 1,000 fin whales in one spot.

Conor Ryan has seen his fair share of whales, and his Twitter handle—@whale_nerd—isn't just a cutesy nickname. Ryan was just 14 years old when he published his first peer-reviewed scientific paper on killer whales with his best friend, Peter Wilson, in 2001. As a wildlife photographer, a zoologist specializing in marine biology and an expert in baleen whales and small cetaceans, he knows when he's looking at something special in the sea.

In other words, when Conor Ryan says his mind is "completely blown" by a whale sighting, you know it's a big deal. Seeing 1,000 fin whales at once? That's a very big deal.

Fin whales are the second-largest animal in the world, second only to the blue whale. In the 20th century, fin whales were hunted to near extinction before commercial whaling was outlawed. Nearly 725,000 were killed in the Southern Hemisphere alone in the mid- 1900s, and though whaling is no longer a threat, fin whales are still on the endangered species list.

Fin whales get their name from an easy-to-spot fin on their backs. Imagine seeing 1,000 of any endangered species in one location, much less 1,000 of these 85-foot, 80-ton whales all feeding in a single location.

Ryan captured the scene on film and shared it on Twitter, writing, "We found about 1000 fin whales over a 5x5 mile area off South Orkney. Blue and humpback also mixed in. Mind completely blown." The video shows a cluster of whales spouting as far as the eye can see.

We found about 1000 fin whales over a 5x5 mile area off South Orkney. Blue and humpback also mixed in. Mind completely blown @LindbladExp #NationalGeographicEndurancepic.twitter.com/xtdvexXwI5
— Conor Ryan (@Conor Ryan) 1642121461

According to The Guardian, Ryan spotted the whales from the National Geographic Endurance polar cruiser, in an area between the South Orkney Islands and the Antarctic peninsula. Their ship was in an area with four large krill fishing vessels, which explains the feeding frenzy.

Ryan said it might be "one of the largest aggregations of fin whales ever documented” and that his estimate of 1,000 whales was a conservative one.

“Words fail me,” Ryan told The Guardian. “I have seen maybe 100 fins here before in previous years. Thousands of chinstrap penguins, petrels, and albatrosses, too … It was unusually calm weather and unusually good visibility.”

Though commercial whaling laws have greatly reduced the decimation of whale populations we saw in the 1900s, whales still face threats from human activity. According to NOAA, the main threat to fin whales today is vessel strikes. Cargo and cruise boat ships have increased in number in the past few decades, which increases the risk of running into whales, but they aren't the only ships that pose a threat. Last year, two dead fin whales had to be dislodged from the hull of an Australian Navy ship after it pulled into the naval pier in San Diego. The fact that they are still considered endangered means we have to stay vigilant about their protection.

But as author Philip Hoare wrote in The Guardian, "In a world constrained by woe and threats to democracy…1,000 fin whales can’t help but lift our hearts." Such a number is decidedly good news, which is always worth celebrating and which provides a beacon of hope that we can make impactful changes that help our planet when we choose to.

From Your Site Articles

Here's the first ever footage of a baby sperm whale nursing from its mother

National Geographic/YouTube

We know that mammals feed their young with milk from their own bodies, and we know that whales are mammals. But the logistics of how some whales make breastfeeding happen has been a bit of a mystery for scientists. Such has been the case with sperm whales.

Sperm whales are uniquely shaped, with humongous, block-shaped heads that house the largest brains in the animal world. Like other cetaceans, sperm whale babies rely on their mother's milk for sustenance in their first year or two. And also like other cetaceans, a sperm whale mama's nipple is inverted—it doesn't stick out from her body like many mammals, but rather is hidden inside a mammary slit.

Most whale and dolphin babies nudge the mammary slit to expose the nipple, allowing them to "suckle." A sperm whale baby's head and mouth aren't really designed for suckling in the traditional sense, obviously, as its massive nose protrudes over its much smaller lower jaw. But even in the whale sense of mom shooting milk into a baby's mouth, it's been unclear how it works for sperm whales due to their oddly shaped heads. Photos and observations have led researchers to believe that the mother whale expresses milk into the water for the baby to ingests outside of her body, but the real mechanics haven't been clearly understood.

With the proliferation of underwater photography and filmography, it may seem strange that we don't have more nursing whale evidence to examine, but because baby whales can't breathe and nurse at the same time, nursing events are usually quite short. Even being in the right place at the right time to observe a whale nursing is rare, much less capturing it on film.

A new four-part documentary series from National Geographic has provided, for the first time, film footage of a sperm whale baby nursing. It shows how the baby actually inserting its lower jaw into the mother's mammary slit, and the milk—which contains ten times more fat than human milk and is the consistency of yogurt—shooting directly into the baby whale's mouth.

Sperm Whale Suckles | National Geographicwww.youtube.com

The documentary series containing this footage, "Secrets of the Whales," was conceived of by National Geographic Explorer and photographer Brian Skerry and follows the stories of five different whale species—narwhals, humpbacks, belugas, sperm whales, and orcas. It was filmed in 24 locations around the world and took three years to make. Produced by award-winning filmmaker and conservationist James Cameron (of "Titanic" and "Avatar" fame) and narrated by award-winning actress and conservationist Sigourney Weaver, the series is sure to please whale lovers and nature lovers alike.

In addition to sperm whale babies breastfeeding, the docuseries shows how beluga whales name themselves so groups can keep track of each other, how baby belugas share their moms' call signs, how 30,000 humpbacks travel together from Australia to Antarctica and use breeches to talk to each other, and how a beluga pod adopted a narwhal into their bod—apparently the first ever cross-species adoption ever recorded.

Executive Producer James Cameron called the series a "challenging, daunting project" in a SXSW Conference panel last month."It's also so important for people to understand and for this film to illuminate how these creatures think, how they feel, what their emotion is like, what their society is like," he said, "because we won't protect what we don't love."

The series premiers on streaming service Disney+ on Earth Day, April 22.

Secrets of the Whales | Official Trailer | Disney+www.youtube.com

The filmmakers hope that by sharing with people the unique identities of the whales they followed, they can inspire people to think about how these magnificent mammals can be better protected.

"It's inescapable that they're being poisoned by us, that they're being deafened by us, or their behaviors, all of their feeding strategies and mating strategies and reproductive strategies are being dismantled by all of this noise from shipping channels and military sonars and all that," Cameron said. "They're going to continue to decline. The right whales are down to about 300…We barely understand these animals, so I think we have to, as a society, we have to think about doing it better."

Indeed we do.

From Your Site Articles

The 'Blue Planet II' crew didn't just capture the magic of the ocean. They helped save it.

Tasked with revealing the planet's most beautiful sights, nature documentarians often hope they inspire people to get involved with conservation. But this film crew decided to start saving the Earth themselves.

On Sunday, the BBC Earth Twitter account confirmed that the filmmaking team behind their spectacular dive into the ocean's hidden depths, "Blue Planet II," didn't stop at capturing the magic of the ocean.

— (@)

"Blue Planet II" is a sequel to the BBC's blockbuster 2001 special and uses cutting-edge camera equipment technology (like suction cup cameras sneakily attached to orca whales) and the melodious voice of Sir David Attenborough, to show the audience both the wonders of the ocean and the problems facing it today.

Problems like plastic. Millions of tons of discarded plastic have found their ways into our oceans, forming gigantic garbage patches and killing off wildlife like birds, sea turtles, and seals.

Last month, Attenborough described a heart-wrenching sight encountered while filming: "We’ve seen albatrosses come back with their belly full of food for their young. You think it’s going to be squid, but it’s plastic." No wonder they felt like they had to clean it up.

A plastic bottle washed up on a beach in Plymouth, England. Photo by Matt Cardy/Getty Images.

The "Blue Planet" team said that they hoped their plastic cleanup would inspire others to do the same, The Independent reports. The BBC even has a website where you can look up specific ways to get involved in ocean conservation, from signing up for beach cleanups, downloading sustainable dining apps, or joining in The Great Nurdle Hunt.

This is not the first time wildlife filmmakers at the BBC have taken action off-camera. In December 2016, the BBC confirmed that their team saved baby sea turtles after filming them getting disoriented and wandering into traffic.

The result of the crew's efforts, "Blue Planet II," is currently available in the U.K. and will premiere on BBC America in January 2018.

Heroes

See stunning before and after shots of coral reefs as ocean temps rose by only 2 degrees.

This is what it looks like when a piece of coral dies.

[rebelmouse-image 19532184 dam="1" original_size="500x281" caption="GIF via Netflix/Exposure Labs/YouTube, from the film "Chasing Coral."" expand=1]GIF via Netflix/Exposure Labs/YouTube, from the film "Chasing Coral."

This is a phenomenon known as coral bleaching, now captured in the award-winning documentary "Chasing Coral." To get these impressive shots, a team of photographers, divers, and scientists traveled the world to capture time-lapse photographs of coral bleaching events.

"The beauty with time-lapse photography is that you have the ability to shift how we as humans see and perceive changes that may move in the slow lane," says photographer Zack Rago.

Getting these images was a challenge. Divers had to spend hours each day battling the currents. And it could be emotionally difficult too.

"Being the person on the ground experiencing those changes is certainly emotionally taxing. I have a deep connection to coral reef ecosystems. Spending as much time as I have documenting their death is something that fills me with guilt and shame to this day," explains Rago. "At the same time, I also cherish those dives because I know that our team has revealed this issue to the world in meaningful and powerful way."

When asked if there was any single dive that was especially hard, Rago says yes. "There is one dive that was particularly difficult. In the hours leading up to the dive, I actually watched the first edit of our time-lapses. Seeing the images from day one and immediately going back out to those dying reefs was the single most emotionally challenging dive I’ll likely ever do."

Coral bleaching happens when the water around a reef becomes too warm.

During a bleaching event, the coral polyps (tiny creatures that actually make the reef) are effectively cooked, slowly turning white before dying. It doesn't take much, the episodes captured in Chasing Coral were the result of only a two-degree rise in water temperature, according to The New York Times.

Once the coral is dead, brown, sludgy algae take over, turning the once vibrant reef into something that looks like a parking lot.

[rebelmouse-image 19532185 dam="1" original_size="500x281" caption="GIF via Netflix/Exposure Labs/YouTube, from the film "Chasing Coral."" expand=1]GIF via Netflix/Exposure Labs/YouTube, from the film "Chasing Coral."

This deadly warming is fueled by climate change, as more than 90% of the excess heat in our atmosphere is absorbed by the ocean.

"Coral reefs are in trouble. We know that if current trends prevail, we will lose the majority of corals on the planet in the coming decades," says Rago. Scientists have warned that, given current trends, we could lose most corals within 30 years. Vast swaths of the Great Barrier Reef (where these photos were taken) may already be past the point of no return.

Rago is planning to head back to the Great Barrier Reef this November to help identify "super corals" that could help scientists breed heat-resistant reefs.

As climate change becomes the new norm, it can be difficult to remember how the world once looked.

"We need to protect what we can right now," says Rago.

There are already a lot of exciting efforts underway. Nations around the world are currently rallying around stopping or mollifying the effects of climate change, with 169 different countries joining in on the landmark Paris 2015 climate agreement.

As they work out the best way to stop this, photography like these amazing time-lapse images can be a touch point for us — something to stick in our minds. And, if we fail, they can be a record for future generations.

"This problem may be hidden in our ocean, but the solutions start with us," Rago says. By sharing these images, people can help inspire friends, family members, or business or political leaders to action.

"Chasing Coral" premiered on Netflix in July 2017 and is still available to watch as of this writing.

If you want to see more, you can watch this three-minute video, including some of the time-lapse images, below:

Time-lapse video captures a disturbing phenomenon known as cor...
These before-and-after images remind us of what's really at stake in the climate conversations at #COP23. (via Chasing Coral)
Posted by Upworthy on Friday, November 10, 2017

The team was also able to capture a weird, rare event known as coral fluorescence, which is well worth a watch. If you'd like to find out more about the film, you can visit their website.

From Your Site Articles

Man shares timelapse of his daily selfies from age 13 to 28 - Upworthy ›

Why this photographer wishes his viral underwater photo didn't exist.

Photographer Justin Hofman was snorkeling along the beautiful coast of Indonesia when the tide swept a mountain of garbage his way.

Photo by Justin Hofman used with permission.

"It was really quite gross," he says. He had been snapping underwater photos of the brilliant coral and different kinds of interesting fish when his field of view was suddenly swamped with trash and sewage.

He continued swimming away from the trash, his camera at the ready, when something tiny caught his eye. Below the wave of garbage, a tiny orange seahorse floated by, its tail wrapped serenely around a pink cotton swab. The juxtaposition struck him, and he quickly snapped a picture.

"This image was a perfect combination of our experiences in Indonesia," he explains. "Amazing wildlife, but terrible pollution."

Photo by Justin Hofman/Wildlife Photographer of the Year used with permission

The photo struck a nerve with everyone who saw it. Hofman submitted the image to the Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition held by the Natural History Museum in London, where it's currently a finalist.

He also posted it to his own Instagram account, where it quickly went viral, attracting over 16,000 Likes and endless waves of supportive comments.

"It’s a photo that I wish didn’t exist but now that it does I want everyone to see it," he wrote in the caption. "What sort of future are we creating? How can your actions shape our planet?"

Ocean pollution is a problem that extends far beyond the shores of Indonesia. It's, well, everywhere.

Here's a disgusting thought: Over a billion pounds of garbage enters the ocean from around the world each year. There are masses of plastic and garbage — called "plastic patches" — clumped together floating through the seas, some that are even bigger than some countries.

This isn't a new problem, but it is one that can seem far away, distant and out of sight amidst the endless ocean. Hofman's photo is a reminder that it's anything but. After all, who hasn't used a Q-tip recently? How many of us have thought about where that Q-tip would end up?

There are a lot of smart people coming up with clever ways of cleaning up our oceans, but we can all help by being more responsible with our trash and never, ever littering.

This seahorse "surfing" on a cotton swab might make a fascinating photo, but as Hofman wrote, it'd be a heck of a lot better if it didn't exist at all.