The blacktip reef shark is a species of requiem shark, family Carcharhinidae, easily identified by the prominent black tips on its fins. Among the most abundant sharks inhabiting the tropical coral reefs of the Indian and Pacific Oceans, this species prefers shallow, inshore waters and its exposed first dorsal fin is a common sight in the region. Most blacktip reef sharks are found over reef ledges and sandy flats, though they have also been known to enter brackish and freshwater environments.

Big Miracle is an upcoming romantic drama film starring Drew Barrymore and John Krasinski. The film, directed by Ken Kwapis, is based on the 1989 book Freeing the Whales by Tom Rose, which covers Operation Breakthrough, the 1988 international effort to rescue gray whales from being trapped in ice near Point Barrow, Alaska. The film is scheduled to be released on February 3, 2012.

The reef cuttlefish or broadclub cuttlefish (Sepia latimanus) is the second largest cuttlefish species after Sepia apama, growing to 50 cm in mantle length and 10 kg in weight. Like many cephalopods, the broadclub can be seen displaying a range of colors and textures. Commonly they are light brown or yellowish with white mottled markings. Males are sometimes dark brown, particularly during courtship and mating. They mate in shallow water between January and May. Their eggs hatch in 38 to 40 days. During the breeding season, males establish a territory, defending a coral head where females lay eggs after mating. Courtship is highly ritualized and involves striking visual displays. Males often guard females to ward off other males.

Mass death of herring in Kvænes, northern Norway, found on the morning of New Year’s Eve. Estimates say there’s 20 tons of dead fish. No one knows why they’re dead (or rather, why they’re beached), but possible causes include washing ashore during a recent storm, being chased by predatory pollock, or getting trapped by a current.

Nome, Alaska appeared on the map during one of the world’s great gold rushes at the end of the century. Located on the Seward Peninsula, by 1900 the town’s population had swelled to 20, 000 after gold was discovered on beaches along the Bearing Sea. By 1925, however, much of the gold was gone, and scarcely 1, 400 people were left in the remote nothern outpost. Nome was icebound seven months of the year and the nearest railroad was more than 650 miles away, in the town of Nenana.

Nome was able to communicate with the rest of the world via the radio telegraph, a relatively new invention in those days. And, although Alaska was still a U.S. Territory until 1959, the government maintained a route over which relays of dog teams carried mail from Anchorage to Nome. A one-way trip along this route, called the Iditerod Trail, took about a month and the “mushers” that traversed the trail were the best in Alaska.

Starfish or sea stars are echinoderms belonging to the class Asteroidea There are about 1,800 living species of starfish that occur in all the world’s oceans, including the Atlantic, Pacific, Indian as well as in the Arctic and the Southern Ocean regions. Starfish occur across a broad depth range from the intertidal to abyssal depths. The Asteroidea occupy several important roles throughout ecology and biology. Sea stars, such as the Ochre sea star have become widely known as the example of the keystone species concept in ecology. The tropical Crown of Thorns starfish are voracious predators of coral throughout the Indo-Pacific region. Other starfish, such as members of the Asterinidae, are frequently used in developmental biology.

Diving cape gannets have surreal appeal. In our mind birds belong to the air element. Seeing them underwater is not usual thing - yet it is totally normal environment for these fish hunters. Plunging into water from heights of 50m at speed of 60km/h they risking breaking necks while hunting for sardines which is main element of their diet. These awesome pictures were posted by Alexander Safonov on Google+.

Fossils are the traces of ancient animals and plants found buried in rock. In order for an organism to be fossilized, the remains need to be covered by sediment, frozen, desiccated, or come to rest in an oxygen free environment. Sometimes a fossil retains the shape and structure of the hard parts of an animal, such as fossilized dinosaur bones. These are not the original bones, because minerals have replaced them over millions of years, but they have the same shape. Other fossils are just the impression of an animal or plant, created when the plant or animal was buried in mud that has gradually solidified into rock.even footprints of animals such as dinosaurs have been preserved.

Not only was Megalodon the biggest prehistoric shark that ever lived; it was the biggest predatory marine creature in the history of the planet, outweighing both modern Great White Sharks and ancient reptiles like Liopleurodon and Kronosaurus. Here are 10 facts you may or may not have known about this lethal predator.

The first problem is already revealed in the question. Sharks are basically not dangerous. Only circumstances may lead to situations which are potentially dangerous for humans. Now many people may feel this is splitting hairs. But there is a big difference between animals which are considered dangerous and certain situations which may be potentially threatening.

Spinosaurus may be the largest of all known carnivorous dinosaurs, even larger than Tyrannosaurus and Giganotosaurus. Estimates published in 2005 and 2007 suggest that it was 12.6 to 18 metres (41 to 59 ft) in length and 7 to 20.9 tonnes (7.7 to 23.0 short tons) in weight. The skull of Spinosaurus was long and narrow like that of a modern crocodilian. Spinosaurus is thought to have eaten fish; evidence suggests that it lived both on land and in water like a modern crocodilian.