#15. Killer Whale Also known as the orca,
this creature is recognizable by its black and white patterned body. In spite of its name,
it's actually a dolphin and not a whale. They can grow as long as 16 to 26 feet,
depending on the gender. They also tend to weigh between 7,000 to 15,000 pounds.
They are apex predators with no natural predators yet tend to eat other fishes, mammals, and birds.
Killer whales can dive up to 866 feet beneath sea level. Although they spend
most of their time in shallow waters, they only go this deep
when prey is scarce. They can hold their breaths for a maximum of 15 minutes.
#14. New Zealand Sea Lion Also known as the hooker's sea lion
and the whakahao, the New Zealand sea lion can typically be found on New Zealand's subantarctic
Auckland and Campbell Islands and to some extent around the coast of New Zealand's
South and Stewart Islands. Only about 10,000 individuals of this species exist,
making it one of the rarest species of sea lion ever. Although females are smaller than males,
they typically average weights between 198 and 990 pounds and a length between 2.3 to 6.6 feet.
These creatures can dive as low as 1959 feet beneath sea level. Although they eat crustaceans,
marine birds, and other furred mammals, they also tend to eat Patagonian toothfishes
and cephalopods like squids and octopuses, which are commonly found at these depths.
#13. Weddell Seal The Weddell Seal is a relatively
large and abundant true seal that can be found all around the arctic circle. It grows between
8 to 11 feet long and can average a weight between 880 to 1320 pounds. They can typically be found
on fast ice, which is ice fastened to land, although, in the winter, they tend to stay
underwater so as to avoid blizzards and other harsh weather conditions.
Weddell seals can dive up to 2966 feet beneath sea level. They usually dive to forage for food
and can last for about an hour underwater. These seals exhibit a diel dive pattern,
diving deeper and longer during the day than at night. After dropping away
from a breathing hole in the ice, the seals become negatively buoyant in the first 100
to 160 feet, allowing them to dive with little effort.
#12. Short-finned pilot whale The short-finned pilot whale has
a worldwide distribution, with a global population of over 700,000 individuals.
Although they can typically be found in the Pacific, Atlantic, and Indian Oceans,
their range keeps moving northward due to global warming. They average lengths of 13 to
20 feet. When they are born, they weigh about 130 pounds, which is twice as heavy as a dalmatian.
The maximum recorded depth of the short-finned pilot whale is 3,340
feet beneath sea level. However, they typically average depths
of 2,300 feet. They go this deep in pursuit of fast-moving squid,
their favorite food. They are highly playful and social, traveling in pods of 10 to 30 members.
#11. Goblin Shark This is a rare species of deep-sea shark. It is so
rare that it is sometimes called a living fossil. This species has been around for 125 million
years. It is usually between 10 to 13 feet long, about as long as a Christmas tree. However, longer
individuals have been captured, particularly one in 2000 that was a long as 20 feet.
These creatures can dive to depths of up to 4,270 feet for short periods of time. They do this while
hunting for cephalopods and crustaceans near the seafloor and in the middle of the water column.
Its long snout is covered with ampullae of Lorenzini that enable it to sense minute
electric fields produced by nearby prey, which it can snatch up by rapidly extending its jaws.
#10. Amphipoda Rather than a specific species,
this is an entire order of creatures. Creatures in this order are malacostracan
crustaceans with no carapace and generally with laterally compressed bodies. They range
in size between 0.039 and 13 inches. They can also be found all around the world. Examples
of creatures in this order include shrimps and prawns. Their bodies are divided into
13 segments which can be grouped into the head, the thorax, and the abdomen.
Some species can dive as low as 17,388 feet.
They do this in search of food since most of them are detritivores and scavengers.
However, most of them also end up as food for other deep-diving and deep-sea creatures.
#9. Spinetail Mobula
This creature is also known as the spinetail devil ray and the spinetail Mobula ray. It is
found throughout the tropical and sub-tropical waters of the Indo-Pacific and the eastern
Atlantic Ocean. It is large and can have a width up to 10 feet long. It is also distinguished from
other rays by its protruding head. It has been observed both alone and in groups.
The spinetail Mobula feeds on zooplankton by filtering seawater.
They can dive as low as 6062 feet in search of food. Although they can be found worldwide,
they typically converge at the Gulf of California for mating and pupping reasons.
#8. Rabbit Fish Also known as the
rat fish, the rabbit fish is typically found in the northeast Atlantic Ocean and
the Mediterranean Sea. With large eyes, nostrils, and tooth plates,
the head gives them a rabbit-like appearance, hence the nickname "Rabbit fish." It can grow
as long as 5 feet and live for up to 30 feet long. It can also weigh up to 5.5 pounds.
The rabbit fish has been classified as a benthophagous species, meaning that their
diet consists of bottom-dwelling invertebrates such as crabs, mollusks, octopuses, seaworms,
and sea urchins. They can dive as deep as 3280 feet. They do this in search of food,
in search of mates, and in search of habitable temperatures for their young.
#7. Dumbo Octopus The dumbo octopus is
so named because it has a pair of large ear-like fins on its head, granting it a somewhat similar
appearance to the title character of Disney's 1941 film Dumbo. It has worldwide distribution and can
live as long as 3 to 5 years. They weigh up to 13 pounds and have an average size of 12 inches.
They live in the cold, abyssal depths of the sea and can dive as low as 23,000
feet. Like most other abyssal dwellers, they go this in search of food and mates and to
hide from predators. Dumbos hover above the seafloor, searching for polychaete worms,
pelagic copepods, isopods, amphipods, and other crustaceans for food.
#6. Leatherback Sea Turtle
The leatherback sea turtle is sometimes called the lute turtle or the leathery turtle.
It is the largest of all living turtles and the heaviest non-crocodilian reptile. It differs
from other modern turtles by its lack of a bony shell. Instead, it has oily flesh and flexible,
leather-like skin. They can grow between 3 to 7 feet long and weigh between 550 to 1540 pounds.
The leatherback sea turtle can dive as deep as 4,200 feet beneath
sea level. They do this following the daytime migration of jellyfish,
their favorite food. To survive at such depths, they have developed certain unique adaptations.
These include collapsible lungs, slowed metabolism, and the ability to regulate
body temperature so that it remains constant regardless of the surrounding water temperature.
#5. Emperor Penguin This is the tallest
and heaviest of all living penguin species. They can grow up to 39 inches
in length and weigh between 49 to 99 pounds. It is typically found in the Antarctic circle.
Its diet consists mostly of fish, crustaceans, and cephalopods.
The Emperor Penguin can remain submerged for up to 20 minutes while hunting for food. It
has been recorded at depths as low as 1,755 feet. In order to hunt so deep,
it has developed several unique adaptations. These include unusually structured hemoglobin
to allow it to function at low oxygen levels, solid bones to reduce barotrauma,
and the ability to reduce its metabolism and shut down non-essential organ functions.
#4. Blainville's beaked whale
Also known as the dense-beaked whale, the Blainville's beaked whale has a somewhat
laterally compressed body, unlike other whales in the family. It can grow up to 14 feet long
and can weigh up to 1800 pounds. It is so named because it has a particularly
dense beak. It can be found in tropical and warm waters of all oceans around the world.
They feed primarily on fish, small squid, and cephalopods. They do not capture their prey
by biting, but instead, by suction. They can dive as low as 5,246 feet in search of food.
They are quite a noise, as they use noise for hunting and communication
#3. Southern Elephant Seal This is one of the two species of
elephant seal that exists. It is the largest extant marine mammal that is not a cetacean.
Adult males have a large proboscis which somewhat resembles a trunk. This,
combined with their large size, is the source of their common name. Males are several times
more massive than females. Males can grow up to 20 feet long and can weigh up to 8,800 pounds.
These creatures spend very little time on the surface for a few minutes of breathing.
They can dive for more than 20 minutes at a time to hunt their prey,
consisting of squid and fish. They can reach as low as 7,835 feet.
#2. Sperm Whale Also referred to as cachalots, the sperm
whale is the largest of the toothed whales and the largest toothed predator. It has a worldwide
distribution and often migrates for feeding and mating. It can grow as long as 68 feet long
and can weigh as much as 90,000 pounds. It tends to eat fish, octopi, rays, and squid.
Since most of these creatures are deep-dwellers,
the sperm whale is known for plunging great depths to hunt. Its robust body also allows
it to survive the pressures at those depths. It can dive as low as 8000 feet. Between dives,
the sperm whale surfaces to breathe for about eight minutes before diving again.
#1. Cuvier's beaked whale
This whale is the deepest diving creature known to mankind. They average a length between 19
to 23 feet and a weight of 7,717 pounds. They tend to eat squid and deep-sea fish,
and it has been suggested that they can collapse their ribcages to survive deep-sea dives.
This creature has the deepest and longest recorded dives among whales at 9,816 feet and 222 minutes,
respectively. However, the reason for these extraordinary dives is not quite known. But
in as much as it dives this deep, it is one of the most popular whales spotted on the beach.
What is your deepest dive? Let us know in the comments below