Gentle giant 🦈
Despite weighing tens of tons, whale sharks feed on some of the ocean's tiniest creatures. Their specialized filter-feeding system allows them to strain plankton, fish eggs, and other small prey from the water.
#SharkWeek returns Sunday, July 26 on Discovery.
Stained glass wings 🪽
Dragonflies are precision hunters, catching up to 95% of the prey they target. Their panoramic vision and remarkable aerial control make them some of the most effective predators in the insect world!
📸: Daniele Nobile
#dragonfly#insect#summer
Nature's spotlight ✨
Those dramatic sunbeams shining through clouds are called crepuscular rays. Although they appear to fan outward, the rays are actually traveling in parallel lines from the Sun! ☀️
📸: Margarita Almpanezou
#sunbeam#sun
Color by chemistry 🎇🧪
Fireworks burst into color when heated metal salts jump to higher energy states, then release that energy as specific wavelengths of light. Copper glows blue, strontium glows red, and barium glows green! 🎆
📸: Anastasia Rukynets
#FourthofJuly
Just keep swimming 🦈
Oceanic whitetip sharks are obligate ram ventilators, meaning they must continuously swim forward so oxygen-rich seawater flows into their mouths and over their gills.
#SharkWeek returns Sunday, July 26 on Discovery.
📸: James R.D. Scott
#whitetipshark
