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
It's longer than a shipping container, has a metre-wide mouth and a dorsal fin the length of a baseball bat: 9 biggest, most gigantic sharks on the planet
These are some of the largest sharks in the sea (and the biggest isn’t the great white!)
Underwater photographer filmed rarely seen creature slithering along the ocean floor in Mauritius
Ribbon eels are usually shy so photographer Ian Haggerty was delighted to enjoy the rare sight of one free-swimming, like a scarf blowing in the wind.
Scuba diver filmed dazzling jellyfish in Thailand. What she spotted attached to it amazed her more
These tiny creatures sometimes use jellyfish as a means of transport, hitching a ride to get to where they need to go.
When a diver swam up to a frogfish, they were amazed by what they saw lodged in its mouth
The fish was locked in a battle for survival with another animal that was almost the same size.
'Moonwalking' orca stunned onlookers in Canada. Experts know what it was doing
Moonwalking is a rare behaviour among transient killer whales and may be a way of dividing up food to share.
"Blows my mind”: when this drone pilot saw a baby humpback whale off the coast of Australia, he wasn’t expecting it to do this
The photographer was amazed to see the newborn humpback whale launch itself into the air as it learnt to breach – and he caught the whole thing on camera.
This photobomb is the most adorable thing you’ll see all day
When this wildlife photographer set up his GoPro in the waters of French Polynesia, a funny fish came to investigate.
“The sea lions were curious but also cautious, letting the team know whose waters they were diving in”
An expedition team were filming in a remote kelp forest in Patagonia when this happened
"A sting from one of these deadly creatures can kill a human in a matter of hours…" 10 most dangerous, deadliest animals in the Indian Ocean
From tiny stinging jellies to huge predatory sharks, these are some of the most dangerous animals in the Indian Ocean
"What is that?" Researchers put a camera on a nurse shark in Florida. They didn't expect it to film this
The scientists were using camera tags to learn more about shark behaviour.
When an expedition team went to the Falkland Islands, a group of curious animals surrounded them
A large group of king penguins approached the researchers “before giving a trademark side-eye and waddling off”.
“I had to do a double take." Marine biologists peered into a shark egg and were astounded by what they saw
In spring 2025, researchers documented the first confirmed case of identical twins in small spotted catsharks.
“In places, you couldn't see a single rock because everything is so densely populated… ” Deep sea scientists find something staggering in the Pacific
A remotely operated vehicles found never-before-seen hydrothermal activity on the seabed in Papua New Guinea.
They’re a whopping 150 million years older than dinosaurs, look like a shark, have a tail like a rat, teeth like a rabbit and sharp, venomous spines
Chimaeras, or ghost sharks, are distant relatives of sharks and rays Here's all you ever need to know about them
"Its sting can cause vomiting and existential dread, and can kill within five minutes..." 10 most dangerous, deadliest animals in the Pacific ocean
From cone snails to crocs, be wary of these deadly marine animals – all found in the Pacific Ocean
Photographer has astonishing leopard shark encounter in enchanted kelp forest
A diver shares his magical moment with leopard sharks in the twinkling canopies of a kelp forest.
Joel Sartore has photographed 18,000 species. His latest is one of the weirdest and rarest yet
After a decade of photographing animals around the world, Joel Sartore has captured his 18,000th species: the critically endangered red handfish.
When scientists put a camera tag on a whale, they never expected to see this
When NOAA researchers used suction-cup tags to study cetaceans, they caught the incredible moment a whale breached.
"Its bristles are like thousands of tiny, hollow needles poking out of every inch of skin, ready to inject you with neurotoxin that burns like fire for several hours…"
A sting burns like fire and they can turn their throat inside out to gobble down a meal. This is the fireworm
Staggering drone footage shows 24m giants speeding through Indonesian waters
Wildlife watchers were lucky enough to be joined by three pygmy blue whales.
As a huge storm approached the US coast, California's great white sharks did this
For the first time, scientists have documented what white sharks do when storms are on the way.
It has a built-in suction cup, vampire-like fangs, can swallow its prey whole – and has one very disgusting dining habit
Rocksuckers can swallow limpets whole before later regurgitating the shell
“Probably ate it headfirst." Here's what scientists found inside this deep-sea fish’s bulging belly
Researchers at the Natural History Museum wanted to solve the intriguing mystery of what was inside this rare fish’s enormous stomach without cutting it open – here’s how they did it.
"They’re the size of a grain of rice… but hundreds can swarm you and deliver a surprisingly sharp bite and draw blood…"
Sand piranhas keep beaches clean by feasting on dead and decaying matter and returning their nutrients to the ecosystem
