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
On a site the size of 27 football fields, 2 million of these were dropped in the ocean to create an artificial reef – instead, it became a disaster
In the 1970s, this conservation project seemed like a great idea. Decades later, it’s caused untold damage
It's longer than the Leaning Tower of Pisa, weighs 499 tonnes and sits 24 metres below the surface, where sharks patrol Noonu Atoll’s tropical waters
The retired tuna freighter has been sunk in an attempt to create a new marine habitat in the Maldives
Can any animals kill the much-feared predator, the great white shark?
Great white sharks are an epic predator but other animals can harm them to
They look like toast racks, ping-pong balls and giant vases, range from pea-sized to car-sized – and are animals that have been on Earth for millions of years
With no gut, or circulatory or nervous system, sponges are among the simplest animals on Earth.
Marine scientists filmed a 0.3mm oyster larva feeding. What they found is ringing alarm bells
High-speed imaging has helped scientists better understand how baby oysters feed, but what they’ve found could be a problem for future oyster populations.
"Like bulldozers in a demolition derby.” These chaotic baby horseshoe crabs giving each other piggybacks are too cute for words
Horseshoe crabs are known for their life-saving abilities but they’re also incredibly cute.
Fat Bear Week 2026 kicks off: here's how to vote – and why everyone is so obsessed with it
For one week each September, Alaskan bears battle it out to be crowned the girthiest grizzly – but why?
In the 1950s, whaling ended around these remote Scottish islands. Decades later, up to 30 minke whales were spotted in one great gathering
Wildlife watchers visited the Scottish Hebrides to see what marine life can be found in waters where whales used to be hunted. They witnessed one of the largest minke whale aggregations ever recorded in the region.
"At first, they are little more than bare surfaces in the ocean’s vast expanse.” Why do sunken ships make good artificial reefs?
When a vessel is properly prepared for scuttling, it can find a new life on the seabed providing a home for countless creatures
Drowned at the end of the Ice Age: The flooded abyss longer than the Grand Canyon and teeming with hundreds of creatures, from mammals to reptiles
The world’s longest underwater cave system can be found in Mexico's Yucatán Peninsula – but which one is it?
It chases fish until they vomit – then devours their sick
Bubbles the dolphin is a familiar face at Lady Elliot Island in Australia, but a new scientific paper is making him famous for something very unusual: eating fish vomit.
Strange purring sound heard on Hawaiian reef – and we're not sure what's causing it
Marine researchers are using unsupervised AI algorithms to identify marine animals based on the noises they make. But not all the sounds they pick up can be identified.
Scientists just photographed a place that's never been seen by humans before. What the images reveal is shocking
During a survey of the Mar del Plata Canyon off the coast of Argentina, deep-sea researchers found dozens of pieces of human rubbish, including food wrappers, a plastic cup and a rubber boot.
"It’s responsible for sinking 800 ships and killing 20,000 people…" What are the most dangerous parts of the ocean?
From hazardous seas to venomous creatures, the ocean can be full of threats. But these regions could be the most dangerous on the planet.
“This moment was wild.” Astonishing footage shows sharks exploding out of water so fast they land on beach
The incredible footage was captured on a beach in Indonesia where shark finning used to take place – since it stopped, the shark population has made a remarkable comeback.
Drone films "apex predator at full strength” taking down turtle in Australia
The rare sighting is a reminder that sharks aren’t cute – but they’re not monsters either.
It has a gaping, cavernous mouth crammed with sharp teeth – and one of the wildest mating strategies in the animal kingdom
These deep-sea fish are known for their iconic lure which tempts prey close to their ferocious mouths so they can trap them in a cage of terrifying teeth
“Males bite the female’s aorta to deliver TTX. This sudden paralysis renders her immobile, enabling the male to mate successfully without being eaten.”
For blue-lined octopus, mating is a dangerous game. That’s why males inject females with venom before sex, according to a new study.
It has superpowers, the fastest punch in the animal kingdom and and is very reluctant to leave its fortress burrow beneath the ocean floor
Mantis shrimp spend most of their lives in their burrows, only leaving home to hunt and mate
Can any animal kill a blue whale? At 33 metres long and heavier than a Boeing 737, it is the largest creature ever to have lived but is it vulnerable?
It would be a brave animal that took on the world's biggest creature
This deep-sea animal was discovered in 1882. Still to this day it's almost never seen alive
The shape-shifting gulper eel is one of the ocean's strangest and most fascinating creatures.
“I cried with happiness.” Wildlife rescuers release young fur seal back into the wild in Tonga
People from several organisations came together to help the juvenile return to the ocean.
“We did not want to see this.” Researchers stunned as predator hiding in plain sight suddenly strikes
All was placid on the ocean floor, when this predator struck in a flash.
Up to 200,000 porcupine caribou make an arduous migration from the Yukon to Alaska every year. Watch their incredible journey
Witness one of the planet's greatest animal migrations.
