Imagine coming face to face with a cannibalistic creature that is as tall as you are and has long tentacles, a razor-sharp beak, and skin that flashes with bizarre, dazzling color. NATURE’s Encountering Sea Monsters does just that, as underwater cameraman Bob Cranston explores the remarkable world of marine creatures called cephalopods. Cephalopods include squids, cuttlefish, octopi, and nautili.

Cranston and top marine scientists dive in waters from Indonesia and Mexico to Australia and Texas, meeting up with a variety of cephalopods — from the tiny but deadly blue-ringed octopus to the giant Humboldt squid, known for its aggressive behavior, flashing light shows, and cannibalism.

Join Bob Cranston as he fearlessly reaches out and interacts with some of the ocean’s most fascinating life forms.

To order a copy of Encountering Sea Monsters, visit the NATURE Shop.

Online content for Encountering Sea Monsters was originally posted December 2005.

A creature of the ocean deep takes center stage when NATURE presents The Octopus Show.

A new age of ocean exploration is lifting the veil of mystery shrouding a creature of legend — the octopus. Dreaded by sailors through the ages, this other-worldly looking denizen of the seas is surrendering the astonishing secrets that have brought it almost mythical status.

With footage of octopus species rarely, if ever, seen before — including one with giant eyes and another with antennae in place of suction cups — NATURE takes viewers into the deepest realms of the ocean for a front-row view of The Octopus Show.

NATURE’s takes you into the depths of the ocean to discover the secrets of INCREDIBLE SUCKERS.

The most remarkable life still undiscovered on our planet will certainly be found in the sea. As new machines explore this inner universe and penetrate depths beyond our reach, we are finding creatures — such as cephalopods — that defy our imagination.

Cephalopods are a group of animals that includes the octopus, squid, and cuttlefish. Basically, celphalopods are “sophisticated snails.” But these flamboyant animals have developed huge brains, superb vision, and probably their most obvious feature — sucker disks.

NATURE brings you face-to-face with these denizens of the deep — from cuttlefish to the “vampire squid from hell” in INCREDIBLE SUCKERS.

Online content for Incredible Suckers was originally posted November 1997.