The animal world is not always in a hurry to share its secrets with a person. But still, studies are being conducted that open the mysterious curtains. Let's try to analyze such unusual scientific reports of zoologists to find out which divers among animals have the best qualities. The rating includes those representatives of the animal kingdom who breathe atmospheric air, but swim and dive great, and some constantly live in the water.
Here are the best divers among animals:
13
Emperor Penguin / Aptenodytes forsteri
A resident of Antarctica will open our list on thebiggest, with which similar experiments were conducted to determine the depth of immersion in the water column. Attaching special sensors to the emperor penguin, it was possible to find out that this species dives to a depth of 540 meters.
The achievement of such a record result is facilitated by the fact that during a long stay under water it can reduce the heartbeat from 200 beats per minute to 60. The penguin continues to be under water even when the oxygen level exceeds a critical level, and another “diver” would have died long ago.
Another mystery for scientists of the world is how he does not die from a rush of blood when he rises sharply to the surface and deftly jumps onto the ice.
By the way, on our site thebiggest.ru you can find out how the Arctic differs from Antarctica.
12
Polar Bear / Ursus maritimus
From the far south we go to the far north. Polar bears spend most of their lives off the coast of the ocean, and therefore swim superbly. In water, they can reach speeds of up to 20 km / h.
Under water can be no more than 2 minutes, and if necessary immersed up to 2 meters. The polar bear has an excellent scent, with the help of which it easily detects the prey. Even if the seal lurks in a wormwood at a depth of 1 meter, the predator is easily taught its smell.
This majestic resident of the Far North did not get on our list because of the depth of immersion, but by the gracefulness of the performance of diving. Before jumping into the ocean abyss, the bear crosses its forelimbs over its huge head and dives beautifully despite its apparent slowness.
11
Hippopotamus / Hippopótamus amphíbius
The artiodactyl mammal is known to the world under the name hippo. For a long time it was believed that their closest relatives are pigs. Now scientists are more inclined to the version that they are closer to whales.
Maybe because of this, hippos like to stay near ponds, and in hot weather they go into the water and stand for a long time, watching what is happening. Hulking and huge hippos, being in the water, leave only ears, eyes and nostrils on the surface. If necessary, they can also dive, having previously gained air.
While under water, the ears and nostrils of the animal are closed by valves.
Under water can be from 3 to 5 minutes, and if necessary, they have enough air for 20 minutes. They can swim and run fast along the bottom.
10
Walrus / Odobenus rosmarus
A powerful, clumsy animal can be easily recognized by the majestic tusks. The walrus is second only to the elephant in size.
They prefer to keep in herds, but hunt alone. At the moment of danger, one of the signalmen with a roar warns the whole herd, and walruses simultaneously rush into the water. Able to dive to a depth of 100 meters, but he does it very rarely. Mostly hunts at depths not exceeding 10 m. Under water it can hold your breath for 10-12 minutes.
From commercial hunting for walruses themselves, the numbers in the twentieth century decreased significantly. Today the laws that protect this beautiful, but clumsy animal have been passed.
9
Harp seal / Pagophilus groenlandicus
A handsome man from the family of Real Seals lives in the cold waters of the Arctic Ocean, preferring to stay on the islands of the northern seas.
The maximum recorded size is 2 meters, although on average adult individuals do not grow more than 180 cm, you can recognize it by the characteristic color, which distinguishes them from other seals. They are carnivores and eat fish, crustaceans and other invertebrates of the northern seas with pleasure.
Under water, they can hold their breath for 5 to 15 minutes, and dive to a depth of 200 meters. Interestingly, when diving, they leave a minimum of air in the lungs so that it does not push them to the surface.
8
Sea Leopard / Hydrurga leptonyx
The sea leopard lives in the subtropical latitudes of the southern hemisphere. Possessing a streamlined body, develops high speed in water. In pursuit of the victim can reach over 40 km / h.
A dangerous predator preys on different types of seals and penguins. Different subspecies of leopards specialize in a particular hunting object. Sometimes during a hunt it can dive to a depth of 300 meters. This reduces the frequency of heartbeats, which saves oxygen.
They hunt mainly in water. But if the victim jumps onto the ice, the sea leopard continues to chase it on the ice surface. In history, recorded cases of attacks of this predator on people.
7
Weddell Seal / Leptonychotes weddelli
The inhabitant of Antarctica was named after the famous English navigator and trapper James Weddell. These Arctic beauties grow up to 3.8 m in length, but what is characteristic of males is less than females.
When hunting, they can dive to great depths. Wikipedia reports that the limit is 800 meters, but there is no link to the source. Scientists in the early 2000s conducted an experiment by attaching special devices to the bodies of several seals.
With the help of devices it was possible to establish that not only the sizes of males and females differ. Females plunged in search of food to a depth of 320 to 395 m, and males on average fished at a depth of 330-350 m. It is noteworthy that these cute animals are practically not afraid of humans. When you approach them, they only raise their heads and make sounds that resemble a whistle.
6
Bottlenose Dolphin / Tursiops truncatus
A beautiful and intelligent mammal is also called a large or bottlenose dolphin. Lives in the warm and temperate zones of all the oceans, and all scientists know 4 subspecies of a beautiful animal.
These dolphins live settled, sometimes wander for short distances. Prefer to stay in groups. In search of food, it can dive to great depths. A case was recorded when bottlenose dolphins in the Gulf of Guinea plunged to a depth of 500 meters. But these are isolated cases requiring large energy costs.
In the Black Sea they dive 90 meters, and in the warm waters of the Mediterranean plunge 150 meters. In the USA, a dolphin named Tuffy was trained to dive for fish to a depth of 300 meters. The Navy Navy experiment was funded.
5
Orca / Orcinus orca
Large marine mammal is a dangerous predator. A flock of killer whales, chasing a prey, can reach speeds of up to 5 km / h. In addition, this is a highly organized animal, which has developed techniques and strategies for hunting.
It was believed that they hunt near the surface of the water, but recent studies have shown that killer whales can dive to great depths. The research results were published in the ICES Journal of Marine Science. The article says that while chasing a fishing vessel, some killer whales descend behind the nets to a depth of 750 m. The record for this cetacean was recorded at 1,087 m.
Scientists claim that this is not characteristic of killer whales, as this is a very dangerous and energy-consuming event. On such dives, the animal decides only because of the intensified competition for food resources.
By the way, on our site thebiggest.ru there is an informative article about the largest predators in the world.
4
Leatherback Turtle / Dermochelys coriacea
A large turtle is on the verge of extinction and is listed in the Red Book. They reach 2 meters in length, and the largest individual known to zoologists weighed a record 916 kg.
It is distinguished from other turtles by the special structure of the carapace, as well as long flippers, the range of which reaches 3 m. With their help, the marine animal swims superbly. During research it was found that this species can dive to a depth of 1,280 m. With such maximum dives of oxygen, it lasts for 70 minutes.
Most likely, the search for food makes you dive so deeply into the reptile.
She got on the pages of the Guinness Book of Records in the section "fastest reptile." It develops a speed of 30 km / h in water, but under natural conditions it rarely picks up such speeds, moving on average at a speed of 7.5 km / h.
3
Sperm whale / Physéter macrocéphalus
The largest of the toothy whale suborder and the only representative of the sperm whale family can grow up to 20 meters in length. He got his name from the Portuguese word cachola, which literally means "big head".
In 1951, during the research, a record dive of this marine giant was recorded. Sperm whale reached a mark of 2,200 meters. Oceanologists and zoologists make the assumption that sperm whales can dive deeper, but so far such facts have not been recorded.
The animal’s special structure helps to dive to such depths and stay under water for a long time. The huge pressure of the deep sea does not crush the sperm whale, since its body is 90% composed of a variety of fluids.
2
Southern elephant seal / Mirounga leonina
The largest pinnipeds in the world have chosen for life the Antarctic and subantarctic latitudes of the Southern Hemisphere. Males grow up to 5 meters in length, but females are much smaller - no more than 3 meters. The weight of some individuals reaches 5 tons.
With this size and weight, these animals are excellent swimmers and divers. This allows them to easily hunt for squid and other marine life. Elephants daily dive to a depth of 400 to 800 meters, but only in the daytime.
Cases were recorded when the depth of immersion of the southern elephant seal was 2,000 meters, while it was under water for 120 minutes. In addition, they are also marathon runners, when more than 5,000 km can swim during summer migrations.
1
Beak / Ziphius cavirostris
Studies from 2014–2016 have shown that beaks are the best divers among marine mammals. Sensors were attached to 11 animals, which recorded that one of the subjects dived to a depth of 2,992 m, and the second broke the record for being under water - 137.5 minutes.
Another interesting fact surprised scientists. The breaks between long dives were no more than 2 minutes. True, after such "swims" underwater, beaks for a while rested on the surface.
Marine life grow up to 7 meters, and weigh from 2 to 3 tons. An amazing view was first described in 1823, but so far man knows little about this marine animal.
🌫
Conclusion
Our list of the best animal divers is now complete. The peculiar rating once again proves that the animal world is amazing and diverse. Perhaps we missed someone, and we will be grateful if our dear reader will add his record holders in the comments. TheBiggest is always waiting for your comments. Write down what good divers among animals did not get on our list.