2026 Ocean Conservancy Photo Contest Winners

Our annual Photo Contest is officially wrapped—and wow, you delivered! More than 1,000 ocean lovers shared their incredible ocean and wildlife photos. Thank you for keeping our ocean in focus during National Ocean Month and inspiring us with your creativity.

Now it’s time to meet the favorites. See the stunning photos that captured the hearts of our judges, staff and fellow ocean lovers.

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Judges Choice Winner:
“Walrus Nursing” by Richard Rothstein

Our group was in a small skiff slowly moving among the icebergs when we came upon the scene in the image. Two female walruses were in what appeared to be a protective posture as one of the females was nursing a small calf. We remained a very respectable distance and did not approach. The walruses seemed to completely tolerate our presence as there appeared to be no alteration of their natural behavior. This was my first encounter with walruses, and it was truly an experience of a lifetime!!

Richard Rothstein

2026 Judges Choice Winner

A word from the judges:

“There’s such tenderness in this Arctic moment—two adult walruses framing the calf nursing between them, all mirrored in the glassy meltwater below. That reflection doubles the impact and gives the composition a beautiful symmetry, and the soft, even light shows off every wrinkle and whisker. A quiet, intimate family portrait set against the fragile backdrop of the sea ice these animals depend on.” – Angela J. Farmer

“I love this photograph!  The composition is excellent with the reflections and the ice bergs in the background balancing the photograph.  I also appreciate that the photographer captured this photo and it does not appear like the animals were stressed out in any way.  They are acting and behaving natural in their natural habitat.  Very important to me as a photographer to not disturb the animals by my presence.  Good job!” – Harvey Hergett

“…Really beautiful and powerful. I loved the calm moment, the reflection and the connection between the walruses. It feels very natural, honest and emotional.” – Andrés Ballesteros

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Staff Choice Winner:
“The Lone Ranger” by Rowan Dear

(Rowan’s Instagram; Rowan’s Website)

A large male Giant Cuttlefish cruises around the shoreline of Whyalla, looking for a mate this season. Most of the Cuttlefish here are smaller and similar size to the females, however you will see some very large males who are 3-4 times the size of some males who will swim around and bully and dominate the other males and sometimes guard up to 3 females. The larger males are probably 2 years old and have been eating their way through summer waiting for the mating season in winter.

Rowan Dear

2026 Staff Choice Winner

A word from the judges:

“This is an absolute showstopper—the sunburst breaking through the surface turns an ordinary dive into something almost cinematic. The cuttlefish’s intricate textures and shifting purple-to-copper tones are stunning, and the way the light rays guide your eye right down to it shows real mastery of natural underwater lighting. A rich, immersive image that makes you feel like you’re in the water with him.” – Angela J. Farmer

“I liked the angle of the shot as shooting upward on the subject gives it a more majestic feel.” – Harvey Hergett

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People’s Choice Winner:
“Sweet Seal” by Nicole Pellegrino

(Nicole’s Instagram; Nicole’s Website)

This sweet seal was resting on the shore of Long Beach, NY on a bright sunny day in April 2024.

Nicole Pellegrino

2026 People’s Choice Winner

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A huge thank you to everyone who entered, voted, shared and cheered on this year’s contest. And a mighty thanks to our expert judges: Angela J. Farmer, Harvey Hergett and Andrés Ballesteros. Congratulations to all our talented photographers—we can’t wait to see what you capture in 2027!

Enjoy the contest’s honorable mentions below and we’ll SEA you next year.

Honorable Mentions

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Deep-Sea Animals That Look Like Aliens

Far below the ocean’s surface—where sunlight disappears, pressure skyrockets and temperatures plunge—some of the strangest animals on the planet have evolved to survive. Transparent heads. Glowing bodies. Needle-like teeth. Tentacles that seem straight out of science fiction.

And yet, these bizarre sea creatures are very real. 

An estimated one million deep-sea species remain undiscovered. In fact, many deep-sea creatures have only been seen a handful of times because their habitats are so vast and difficult to explore.

Here are seven ocean animals that prove our blue planet can be just as strange as outer space. 

1. The Vampire Squid

Despite its dramatic name, the vampire squid does not want to suck your blood. This deep-sea animal earned its spooky reputation because of its dark color, glowing eyes and cloak-like webbing stretched between its arms. 

Unlike many squid species, vampire squid don’t actively chase prey. They have the ability to match the density of surrounding seawater to avoid constantly swimming by hanging suspended or drifting. They then use long, filament-like appendages to feed on “marine snow”—tiny drifting particles of organic material. 

To avoid predators in the darkness, vampire squid rely on bioluminescence. Light-producing organs, called photophores, help them blend into faint light filtering down from above. When threatened, photophores near the tips of their arms create bursts of light that may confuse or distract predators long enough for the squid to escape. 

2. The Barreleye Fish

If aliens wore fishbowls on their heads, they might look something like the barreleye fish.

This bizarre fish has a transparent head filled with fluid, allowing us to see its bright green eyes rotating inside its skull. Barreleye fish eyes can point upward to search for prey silhouetted against faint sunlight—or rotate forward when it’s time to feed.

For decades, scientists misunderstood how barreleyes actually looked, likely because damaged specimens lost the transparent tissue around their heads during the collection process. That was the case until researchers at the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute were able to observe one alive.

Barreleyes serve as good reminders that we still have so much to learn about life beneath the waves. 

3. The Giant Isopod

Imagine a roly-poly the size of a housecat. That’s basically a giant isopod.

These enormous crustaceans live deep on the ocean floor, up to 7,000 feet down, and they can grow more than a foot long! Their segmented armor, multiple legs and glowing eyes give them a prehistoric appearance—fitting, as the first recorded isopod fossil is more than 300 million years old. 

Because food is scarce in the deep sea, giant isopods are built for survival. They can go surprisingly long periods of time without eating—sometimes years—and often scavenge remains that drift down to the floor.

4. The Anglerfish

Few creatures scream “deep-sea alien” more than the anglerfish. 

With oversized teeth, expandable stomachs and a glowing lure dangling from its head, the anglerfish looks like something designed for a science-fiction movie. The glowing lure is actually bioluminescence—a natural chemical light used to attract prey in the darkness of the deep ocean.

Anglerfishes hunt using their bright lures to entice fish and crustaceans to draw close. Only females have the lures, however (you go, girl!). They also use this method to attract males.

In a habitat that sunlight never reaches, producing light can mean the difference between survival and starvation. 

5. The Dumbo Octopus

Yes, the dumbo octopus is actually named after Disney’s Dumbo. Dumbo octopuses are, in fact, adorable and measure an average of just 8-12 inches in length.

Dumbo octopuses have ear-like fins extending from the sides of their heads that flap through water like tiny wings. They live at extreme ocean depths, 1,000-13,000 feet beneath the surface, making them one of the deepest-living octopus species scientists know about.

Unlike some octopus relatives, dumbo octopuses don’t ink when threatened. With predators limited that far down in the ocean, they don’t possess a defensive ink sack like other octopuses do.

Their cute appearance may seem less alien than some deep-sea creatures but make no mistake: An octopus flying through total darkness thousands of feet underwater is still pretty otherworldly.

6. The Goblin Shark

Nicknamed a “living fossil,” the goblin shark looks unlike almost any other shark species alive today. 

Goblin sharks have semi-translucent skin, and their blood vessels can be seen through it. That’s why the goblin shark may look different colors in photos—sometimes a pale white, grey or pink. Its long, flattened snout and protruding jaws create an unmistakable profile. Even stranger? Those jaws can rapidly shoot forward to snatch prey before retracting again.

The mysterious allure of goblin sharks remains strong, as information is sparse, and photos of the species are extremely rare. Encounters with humans, through observation or accidental catch, are limited. What’s more alien than that!?

7. Gelatinous Deep-Sea Creatures

Some of the ocean’s strangest residents aren’t even solid.

Gelatinous animals include glowing jellies and drifting organisms that appear almost holographic underwater. Some pulse with neon colors. Others trail unbelievably long tentacles. 

Sea jellies date as far back as 500 million years ago—if not longer. They are soft-bodied creatures consisting of at least 95% water, possessing a simple structure and a noticeable lack of almost everything that distinguishes plant from animal—including blood, a heart and a brain. Talk about out of this world!

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It’s easy to think of deep-sea creatures as mysteries, but these animals are essential parts of our ocean ecosystem. The deep ocean regulates climate, stores carbon and supports biodiversity on a massive scale. 

Yet much of it remains unexplored.

That’s why Ocean Conservancy is committed to protecting our entire ocean—and all the creatures that dwell there, no matter how mysterious they may be. The truth is, some of the most incredible discoveries on our planet may still be waiting in the dark depths below.

And honestly? That’s way cooler than science fiction!

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Preparing for the 11th Our Ocean Conference

I grew up in Chile, a country that stretches like a thin line between the Andes and the Pacific Ocean, with more than 4,000 kilometers of coastline. The sea is not just scenery but life itself–artisanal fishermen, coastal communities, entire families whose livelihoods depend on what the ocean gives and what we, in return, must protect.

A moment of strain and a reason to push harder

We meet in Mombasa, Kenya for the 11^th Our Ocean Conference, June 16-18, 2026, at a difficult time for multilateralism. Processes we have long relied upon, including those hosted by the United Nations, face real challenges. Geopolitical tensions, competing priorities and institutional fatigue test the frameworks that have guided international cooperation for decades.

It would be easy to retreat—to wait for better conditions. But the ocean cannot wait.

The ocean is warming and acidifying. Biodiversity loss is accelerating. Plastic pollution chokes coastlines from Mombasa to Valparaíso in Chile. And under the ocean’s surface, in places we are only beginning to understand, ecosystems critical to life on Earth could face exploitation before we’ve even fully mapped or understood them.

This is precisely why platforms like the Our Ocean Conference matter more than ever.

The Our Ocean Conference: Proof that concrete action is possible

Since its inception, the Our Ocean Conference has mobilized more than 2,900 commitments worth approximately $169 billion. These are not abstract pledges; they are tangible investments in marine protected areas, maritime security, sustainable blue economy and fisheries, pollution reduction and climate resilience.

The conference works because it is based on mobilizing concrete actions. Governments, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), the private sector and philanthropies come together not just to talk, but to commit and to report on whether the investments have delivered.

Ocean Conservancy has participated in every Our Ocean Conference since its inception. This year, at the 11th conference in Mombasa, we are advancing solutions on multiple fronts: ocean-climate diplomacy, a fossil fuel-free ocean, responsible offshore renewable energy, and building coalitions to address plastic pollution, including the scourge of abandoned, lost and discarded fishing gear.

But one initiative feels especially urgent.

Protecting the twilight zone before it’s too late

The mesopelagic zone, also known as the ocean’s “twilight zone,” spanning depths of 200 to 1,000 meters beneath the ocean’s surface, is one of the planet’s most critical ecosystems. By some estimates, it harbors upwards of 90% of the ocean’s fish biomass. It is home to prey species that sustain commercially important fisheries and marine wildlife. And through the biological carbon pump, it sequesters an estimated 2 to 6 gigatons of carbon annually, double the emissions of all cars worldwide, making it essential to climate stability.

Yet this ecosystem remains largely unprotected. Growing demand for fishmeal and health supplements is driving commercial interest in exploiting mesopelagic species. In addition, management gaps leave this vast zone vulnerable before we fully understand the impacts of disrupting this area of the ocean.

At the Our Ocean Conference, Ocean Conservancy, Environmental Defense Fund, and the Marine Conservation Institute, with support from a number of partners, will launch the Mesopelagic Zone Conservation Challenge. This voluntary initiative brings together governments, research institutions and civil society to prioritize conservation through a precautionary approach, advance scientific research and integrate twilight zone protections into international frameworks.

We have already built momentum. Last year, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) World Conservation Congress adopted Resolution 035, urging members worldwide to protect the integrity of the mesopelagic zone. And foundational work was completed to assess management gaps, identify conservation opportunities and develop a science-to-action framework.

The triple planetary crisis demands a united response

We are confronting a triple planetary crisis: climate change, biodiversity loss and plastic pollution. These threats are interconnected, nowhere more visibly than in our ocean. Addressing this crisis requires the kind of collaborative action that feels hardest when institutions are strained. But it is precisely in difficult times that we must strengthen, not abandon, our shared work.

The ocean does not care about geopolitics. It does not pause for elections or negotiations. It continues to warm, to acidify, to absorb our plastics and our carbon. And it continues to sustain billions of people who, like the fishing communities I grew up watching along Chile’s coast, depend on its health for their survival.

Our Ocean is an opportunity to prove that multilateralism still works, that when we come together around shared goals, we can still achieve what no nation can accomplish alone. The ocean taught me, as it taught Neruda, that we are part of something larger than ourselves. It asks nothing of us except that we pay attention, and that we act.

For the ocean.

Chilean poet Pablo Neruda understood the importance of the ocean:

Necesito del mar porque me enseña.”

Pablo Nerudo

Chilean poet

The ocean teaches. It teaches us about resilience, interdependence, life. And right now, it is teaching us something urgent: that even when the systems we’ve built to protect it are under strain, we cannot afford to look away.

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