The Zebra Mantis Fish
In The Zebra Mantis Fish, narrator Sir David Attenborough describes the hunting and feeding behaviors of the male zebra mantis shrimp, which lives deep in the green seas of Australia. This video is excerpted from BBC’s Blue Planet II, a natural history series that explores the world's oceans, the animals that live in them, and the threats they face, using modern filming techniques and equipment to capture previously unseen areas of the ocean.
Lesson Express
Q: Describe how the shrimp attacks its prey.
A: The shrimp quickly pushes up from beneath the sandy surface and strikes with a violent blow to the fish above, pulling it downward below the surface.
Q: What are the different roles of the male and female shrimp?
A: The male hunts for food and brings it back to its long-term mate. The female’s job is to protect her eggs.
Q: The narrator mentions that the male sometimes leaves its mate, even after many years. What do you think may happen to the female?
A: The female could possibly starve since it doesn’t have the experience of hunting, it may put out a signal that it needs a new mate, or perhaps it would learn to hunt.
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In Subtle Signs of Life on the Seafloor, narrator David Attenborough journeys over two miles beneath the ocean's surface, where the pressure is immense — 300 times greater than at sea level. Here, marine snow, tiny organic particles drifting from above, slowly settles on the seafloor over months. This vast, flat expanse stretches for thousands of miles, with subtle signs of life visible in the soft sediment. Sea urchins sift through the accumulating snow, while shrimp carefully pick out edible particles. The monkfish, nearly indistinguishable from the sand, patiently waits for prey to be lured toward its deceptive trap, sometimes going days between meals. This video is excerpted from BBC’s Planet Earth, a breathtaking documentary series that highlights the natural wonders of our planet.
In Sponges on the Reef Are a Home Worth Defending, narrator Sir David Attenborough explains how shrimp inhabit sponges and how they help the sponge and the sponge helps them. Learn about a shrimp colony. This video is excerpted from BBC’s Blue Planet, a definitive documentary series diving into the mysterious depths of the sea to discover the natural history of the world’s oceans and the rarely seen marine life that reside there.
In Competitive Strategies on the Coral Reef, narrator Sir David Attenborough describes how grouper and lionfish handle being predators in the same space in the coral reef. Learn how a pair of harlequin shrimp attempt to take a starfish for a meal. This video is excerpted from BBC’s Blue Planet, a definitive documentary series diving into the mysterious depths of the sea to discover the natural history of the world’s oceans and the rarely seen marine life that reside there.