Melissa Hobson
Marine science and conservation writer
Melissa Hobson, doing business as The Ocean Writer Ltd., is a marine science and conservation writer based in Hastings. She has written about the ocean for outlets including BBC Wildlife, BBC Countryfile, National Geographic, New Scientist and the Guardian. Visit Melissa’s website at melissahobson.co.uk or follow her on LinkedIn.
Recent articles by Melissa Hobson
"Never seen before.” Scientists make astounding discovery on Australian island
Researchers in Australia found an endangered species of lamprey far outside its usual range and hope this could help them better understand how to protect it.
Researchers sink listening devices 1,100m deep off the Louisiana coast and hear the sounds of an elusive animal
Scientists used 3D acoustic technology to learn more about the diving behaviour of beaked whales – this is what they found.
“Lifted her enormous foot.” Herd of elephants stomps towards photographer's camera in Kenya, then this happens
A wildlife photographer set up his camera and moved away to give the elephants plenty of space. But the curious herd had other ideas for his camera...
The US Navy detected a strange sound in the ocean. These scientists think it could be coming from the loneliest animal on the planet
Known as the “loneliest whale in the world”, the mystery 52-hertz whale sings at a different frequency from other baleen species – could it be lonely?
Do sharks develop a taste for human flesh after a first bite?
Humans aren’t natural prey for sharks and it’s incredibly unlikely that sharks get a taste for humans after a bite
It's 6 metres long, ugly with translucent skin and looks like a goblin with a witch’s nose and has the strangest jaw ever seen. Oh and it lives deep in the ocean too
This jaw-dropping shark is pink, nightmarishly ugly and can slingshot its jaw out of its face when it’s hungry
1,000 giant fish are mysteriously circling in this South African estuary. Scientists may finally know why
Researchers believe they may have worked out why giant trevally swim upstream in the Mtentu Estuary and circle in vast numbers.
A 136kg body part was just found floating in the ocean in Hawai'i
Whale placentas only float on the surface of the ocean briefly, so collecting them for scientific study is incredibly rare.
“I can’t express to you how rare this behaviour is”: 'tail walking' dolphin filmed in California
In this rare behaviour, the dolphins push themselves vertically out of the water and ‘walk’ along using their tail.
Scientists take DNA from 623 beluga whales in Alaska. What they discover surprises them all
Researchers in Alaska have discovered that beluga whales have lots of different partners and this “mate switching” could be vital for helping populations survive.
Crocodile experts are gathering eggs from nests in Laos. This is why
Critically endangered Siamese crocodiles are getting a head start in Laos thanks to local conservation teams.
Drone captures incredible whale hunting behaviour in Canada. Experts think they've only just learned how to do it
Scientists believe that Alaskan humpback whales are teaching Canadian populations to bubble net feed.
These students dropped a baited camera into the Atlantic Ocean. "All went quiet…" then this showed up
The students were blown away by the marine life on their field trip in the Azores, a remote archipelago in the North Atlantic Ocean.
'Walking sharks' found off Australian coast. A closer look reveals extraordinary new discovery
The find suggests that epaulette sharks, known for their unusual ability to 'walk' along the seafloor, could be more resilient to environmental threats than we thought.
Spy camera dropped into sea off Washington coast and left there for more than 100 days. This is why
Researchers placed the camera next to a tidal turbine to see how animals interact with the equipment in the water.
There's a weird fish in Washington with a huge hole in its head. Scientists think they've figured out why
Researchers studying rockhead poachers from Deadman Bay think they may have solved the mystery of the fish's odd bowl-shaped head.
Researchers strapped cameras to penguins in Antarctica and followed them into the deep. What they filmed is incredible
Scientists put tiny cameras on penguins’ backs in efforts to gather evidence to support new marine protected areas in Antarctica.
This animal eats plastic and poops it out at the bottom of the sea – and scientists just recorded it
In a scientific first, researchers have recorded how quickly microplastics pass through the gut of zooplankton to better understand marine plastic pollution.
In the dead of the night, this diver saw a bizarre thing scuttling out of the darkness
During a night dive in Bali, an underwater photographer happened upon a fascinating example of symbiosis between a carrier crab and an upside-down jellyfish.
When scientists went to a group of remote South Pacific islands, they weren’t expecting to find so many of these giants
A new study has revealed that giant clams are thriving in American Sāmoa thanks to protections from traditional community management.
Researchers extract DNA from 25 Killer whales off the coast of Japan – and make "crucial" new discovery
New research reveals that orcas around the island of Hokkaido can be split into two distinct forms, offering conservationists important information that can help protect the animals.
“Straight out of a sci-fi film." Diver spots strange animal on Great Barrier Reef. What it was doing blew her mind
Wildlife filmmaker stumbles upon a brittle star laying thousands of glowing eggs in Australia – and it's mesmerising to watch.
10 most powerful whales on the planet – are these the ocean’s smartest killers?
Cetaceans are among the most intelligent creatures in the ocean and many whales have used their big brains to develop cunning hunting strategies.
Watch this adorable baby sea otter learning to float on its own. What happened next is heartbreaking...
Wildlife lover Ayse Genisel was delighted to spot a baby sea otter through her binoculars, but people trying to get too close eventually led to tragedy for the pup