Blue Planet II

One Ocean

29 Oct 2017


Species features in each Sequence

1
Common bottlenose dolphin, Indo-Pacific bottlenose dolphin
2
Orange-dotted tuskfish, White strawberry cockle
3
Indopacific sooty tern, Giant trevally
4
Munk's devil ray
5
False killer whale, Common bottlenose dolphin
6
Northern sea otter, Red sea urchin, Orange-footed sea cucumber, Common seadragon
7
Asian sheepshead wrasse
8
Atlantic herring, Killer whale (Type 1 Eastern North Atlantic), Humpback whale
9
Atlantic walrus, Polar bear

# Species by IUCN Conservation Status

1
Common bottlenose dolphin
Tursiops truncatus truncatus
LC
Common bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus truncatus) as shown in Blue Planet II - One OceanCommon bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus truncatus) as shown in Blue Planet II - One OceanCommon bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus truncatus) as shown in Blue Planet II - One Ocean
Red Sea, Egypt

Self-medicating on bush-like corals called gorgonians

1
Indo-Pacific bottlenose dolphin
Tursiops aduncus
NT
Indo-Pacific bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops aduncus) as shown in Blue Planet II - One OceanIndo-Pacific bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops aduncus) as shown in Blue Planet II - One OceanIndo-Pacific bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops aduncus) as shown in Blue Planet II - One Ocean
Wild Coast, Eastern Cape, South Africa

2
Orange-dotted tuskfish
Choerodon anchorago
LC
Orange-dotted tuskfish (Choerodon anchorago) as shown in Blue Planet II - One OceanOrange-dotted tuskfish (Choerodon anchorago) as shown in Blue Planet II - One OceanOrange-dotted tuskfish (Choerodon anchorago) as shown in Blue Planet II - One Ocean
Lizard Island, Australia

2
White strawberry cockle
Fragum fragum
NE
White strawberry cockle (Fragum fragum) as shown in Blue Planet II - One OceanWhite strawberry cockle (Fragum fragum) as shown in Blue Planet II - One OceanWhite strawberry cockle (Fragum fragum) as shown in Blue Planet II - One Ocean
Lizard Island, Australia

Both species of Cardiidae cockles found on Lizard Island [1] make an appearance, but the Pacific strawberry cockle (Fragum unedo), with its distinctive red sculpturing on its radial ribs [2] is shown very briefly (e.g. at 10:25). The white strawberry cockle (Fragum fragum) is shown more consistently throughout the sequence.
[Link 1] [Link 2]
3
Indopacific sooty tern
Onychoprion fuscatus nubilosus
LC
Indopacific sooty tern (Onychoprion fuscatus nubilosus) as shown in Blue Planet II - One OceanIndopacific sooty tern (Onychoprion fuscatus nubilosus) as shown in Blue Planet II - One OceanIndopacific sooty tern (Onychoprion fuscatus nubilosus) as shown in Blue Planet II - One Ocean
Goelettes Island, Farquhar Atoll, Seychelles

There are also two brief shots of a trevally launching out of the water where we see it hunting a brown noddy (Anous stolidus) at 15:13 and 15:34.
3
Giant trevally
Caranx ignobilis
LC
Giant trevally (Caranx ignobilis) as shown in Blue Planet II - One OceanGiant trevally (Caranx ignobilis) as shown in Blue Planet II - One OceanGiant trevally (Caranx ignobilis) as shown in Blue Planet II - One Ocean
Goelettes Island, Farquhar Atoll, Seychelles

https://wildbirdconservation.wordpress.com/2017/11/04/a-bbc-natural-history-unit-first-for-sooty-terns/
4
Munk's devil ray
Mobula munkiana
VU
Munk's devil ray (Mobula munkiana) as shown in Blue Planet II - One OceanMunk's devil ray (Mobula munkiana) as shown in Blue Planet II - One OceanMunk's devil ray (Mobula munkiana) as shown in Blue Planet II - One Ocean
Sea of Cortés, Baja California, Mexico

5
False killer whale
Pseudorca crassidens
NT
False killer whale (Pseudorca crassidens) as shown in Blue Planet II - One OceanFalse killer whale (Pseudorca crassidens) as shown in Blue Planet II - One OceanFalse killer whale (Pseudorca crassidens) as shown in Blue Planet II - One Ocean
Hauraki Gulf, North Island, New Zealand

5
Common bottlenose dolphin
Tursiops truncatus truncatus
LC
Common bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus truncatus) as shown in Blue Planet II - One OceanCommon bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus truncatus) as shown in Blue Planet II - One OceanCommon bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus truncatus) as shown in Blue Planet II - One Ocean
Hauraki Gulf, North Island, New Zealand

6
Northern sea otter
Enhydra lutris kenyoni
EN
Northern sea otter (Enhydra lutris kenyoni) as shown in Blue Planet II - One OceanNorthern sea otter (Enhydra lutris kenyoni) as shown in Blue Planet II - One Ocean
Alaska, USA

In Alaska, sea otters lounge together in great rafts on the water's surface above the kelp forests of the Pacific Coast.

This brief shot of this species precedes a more in-depth in the "Green Seas" episode [1], which showcases the otters' pivotal role in controlling the population of sea urchins which feed on the kelp forests.
[Link 1]
6
Red sea urchin
Mesocentrotus franciscanus
NE
Red sea urchin (Mesocentrotus franciscanus) as shown in Blue Planet II - One OceanRed sea urchin (Mesocentrotus franciscanus) as shown in Blue Planet II - One Ocean
Alaska, USA

Montage - Species featured in more depth in a future episode
6
Orange-footed sea cucumber
Cucumaria frondosa
NE
Orange-footed sea cucumber (Cucumaria frondosa) as shown in Blue Planet II - One OceanOrange-footed sea cucumber (Cucumaria frondosa) as shown in Blue Planet II - One Ocean
Bergen, Norway

Orange-footed sea cucumbers emerge in the waters off Bergen, Norway, to feed using each of their ten arms to grab starfish eggs floating in the water.

This brief shot of this species precedes a more in-depth in the "Green Seas" episode [1].
[Link 1]
6
Common seadragon
Phyllopteryx taeniolatus
LC
Common seadragon (Phyllopteryx taeniolatus) as shown in Blue Planet II - One OceanCommon seadragon (Phyllopteryx taeniolatus) as shown in Blue Planet II - One Ocean
Flinders Pier, Flinders, Victoria, Australia

Common seadragons are perfectly camouflaged amid in the green seas off Victoria, Australia.

This brief shot of this species precedes a more in-depth in the "Green Seas" episode. Details on the filming location can be found on that episode's page [1].
[Link 1]
7
Asian sheepshead wrasse
Semicossyphus reticulatus
DD
Asian sheepshead wrasse (Semicossyphus reticulatus) as shown in Blue Planet II - One OceanAsian sheepshead wrasse (Semicossyphus reticulatus) as shown in Blue Planet II - One OceanAsian sheepshead wrasse (Semicossyphus reticulatus) as shown in Blue Planet II - One Ocean
Sado Island, Japan

Director Rachel Butler explains in an interview with Radio Times that this sequence was filmed off Sado Island in Japan [1]. There's also a great article on divephotoguide.com about this fascinating species [2].
[Link 1] [Link 2]
8
Atlantic herring
Clupea harengus
LC
Atlantic herring (Clupea harengus) as shown in Blue Planet II - One OceanAtlantic herring (Clupea harengus) as shown in Blue Planet II - One OceanAtlantic herring (Clupea harengus) as shown in Blue Planet II - One Ocean
Vengsøy & Andfjord, Norway

8
Killer whale
Orcinus orca
DD
Killer whale (Orcinus orca) as shown in Blue Planet II - One OceanKiller whale (Orcinus orca) as shown in Blue Planet II - One OceanKiller whale (Orcinus orca) as shown in Blue Planet II - One Ocean
Vengsøy & Andfjord, Norway

Stunning shoals of Atlantic herring with a beat of their tails (a method known as 'carousel' feeding)

8
Humpback whale
Megaptera novaeangliae
LC
Humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae) as shown in Blue Planet II - One OceanHumpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae) as shown in Blue Planet II - One OceanHumpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae) as shown in Blue Planet II - One Ocean
Andfjord, Norway

9
Atlantic walrus
Odobenus rosmarus rosmarus
NT
Atlantic walrus (Odobenus rosmarus rosmarus) as shown in Blue Planet II - One OceanAtlantic walrus (Odobenus rosmarus rosmarus) as shown in Blue Planet II - One OceanAtlantic walrus (Odobenus rosmarus rosmarus) as shown in Blue Planet II - One Ocean
Kvitøya, Svalbard, Norway

The shots of the walrus trying to haul out on glacial ice, given the lack of sea ice, were filmed off Kvitøya in Svalbard, according to a behind-the-scenes article [1].
[Link 1]
9
Polar bear
Ursus maritimus
VU
Polar bear (Ursus maritimus) as shown in Blue Planet II - One OceanPolar bear (Ursus maritimus) as shown in Blue Planet II - One OceanPolar bear (Ursus maritimus) as shown in Blue Planet II - One Ocean
Kvitøya, Svalbard, Norway

More details about the polar bear encounter for this sequence can be found in this article from WIRED [1]: "The team behind the BBC's Blue Planet II was filming a colony of walruses in the Arctic one afternoon when a polar bear appeared in the distance. "As it got closer we were able to view it through the telescopic lens of their Cineflex camera system," says BBC producer and photographer Jonathan Smith . "We assumed that it was looking for one of the many pups in the colony." As the bear closed in, the walruses got spooked. As one ran, a chain reaction began and the entire colony rushed into the sea."
[Link 1]