View illustrations of bioluminescent functions in marine organisms

Bioluminescence provides organisms with a method of hunting, defense, or mating

Unlike glow sticks, bioluminescent reactions use renewable resources like oxygen and ATP. This ability allows fireflies to mate and deter predators, anglerfish to confuse and attract prey, and deep-sea shrimp to defend themselves by vomiting glowing slush.

Bioluminescence became common in the ocean to support survival in dark environments

Despite seeming like a rare ability in land animals and unseen in plants, bioluminescence has evolved at least 29 times across marine species, indicating its necessity for survival where hiding spots are rare and highlighting how environments provide evolutionary pressure.

View a gallery of bioluminescent organisms, including jellyfish and mushrooms

Some species produce a quick flash of light, while others glow steadily with an eerie glow, often to seek attention or in response to being disturbed. Snails, worms, fungi, and other organisms highlight that this ability evolved independently, rather than from one common ancestor.

Watch David Attenborough’s documentary on bioluminescent creatures

Sea creatures can make their bodies glow to camouflage themselves by mimicking the appearance of the night sky as seen from underwater. Species without this ability can form a symbiotic relationship with bioluminescent bacteria or eat other organisms with relevant biochemicals.

Humans have used bioluminescence as a means of military advantage

During World War I, the British Navy sank a German U-boat after spotting the blue light forming at the sides and in the wake of the boat. Jellyfish slime was applied to a Roman walking stick for nighttime guidance, while bioluminescent fungi in Indonesia fulfilled the same purpose.

View examples of luciferin, the light-emitting molecule behind bioluminescence

Bioluminescent marine organisms rely on various unique luciferins, including Cypridina-type luciferin in seed shrimp and chlorophyll-based dinoflagellate luciferin, to react with oxygen to produce light. These chemicals require unique catalysts to help them bind with oxygen.

Solutions of bioluminescent bacteria can create FOMO-inducing living art

A 2002 exhibition at Montana State University-Bozeman placed the bacteria onto petri dishes that served as macroscopic pixels to create images. Once the bacteria finished eating all the food in the sealed dishes, the light slowly faded away, ending the exhibit.

Bioluminescent reaction enzymes are often used in biomedical research

Near-infrared luciferase systems allow researchers to image and analyze cellular activity in living animals because they penetrate tissue more deeply than visible light. This provides a means of studying gene expression and protein interactions without harming the animals.

Massive blooms of microscopic plankton called dinoflagellates produce the neon blue light seen in glowing tides.

View a sample of the bioluminescent tree of life

This diagram shows 42 different light-producing organisms, from bacteria and fungi to worms, fish, and crustaceans. It illustrates how the ability to produce light has appeared multiple times across the tree of life, rather than stemming from a single ancestor.

Why 75% of ocean animals glow

About 75% of ocean creatures can make their own light. It's called bioluminescence—and it all comes down to a special chemical reaction happening inside their bodies.

The first appearance of bioluminescence was at least 540 million years ago

After analyzing fossils, genetic data, and statistical methods, scientists believe octocorals were the first organisms to evolve light-producing abilities. As a result of independent evolution across at least 94 species, this phenomenon is connected to a diverse range of behaviors.

Bioluminescence may provide a sustainable alternative to electric lighting

French start-up Glowee is experimenting with lights made from bioluminescent microorganisms in public spaces to reduce energy use. While the technology shows promise, challenges remain with brightness, maintenance, and scaling it for widespread use.

Fireflies light up to provide mating signals and warnings to predators

Variations in the illumination patterns and flight paths while emitting light have been observed across firefly species. Some species instead rely on pheromones if they are primarily active during the day or have lost the ability to illuminate.

Massive blooms of microscopic plankton called dinoflagellates produce the neon blue light seen in glowing tides.

When caught in the mouths of cardinal fish, seed shrimp release glowing, bioluminescent chemicals, which alert predators of the cardinal fish, prompting the shrimp's ejection.

When caught in the mouths of cardinal fish, seed shrimp release glowing, bioluminescent chemicals, which alert predators of the cardinal fish, prompting the shrimp's ejection.

Light pollution is giving oysters insomnia

Oysters, bivalve mollusks that have light-detecting cells along their skin, can't sleep with all this artificial light. According to a 2022 study, oysters' sleep cycles are disturbed by light dimmer than that provided by the full moon. As with humans, it's possible that these bouts of insomnia could have adverse health effects and contribute to the development of disease over time.

Some North American bats can glow in the dark

After examining 60 museum specimens from six different species, scientists found that all of them emitted light after being exposed to ultraviolet radiation. Researchers are perplexed by this natural phenomenon and are currently unable to deduce the reason behind it.

Behind the fascinating disguising mechanism of camouflage

Camouflage—nature's master game of hide-and-seek—is more complex than simply how things look. The disguising process required millions of years of evolution that have programmed how our brains take shortcuts. Watch this video to see examples of camouflage and understand how we process it.

Bacteria use chemical signals to communicate and coordinate with one another

Through a system called quorum sensing, bacteria produce and absorb compounds from their environment to identify allies or competitors and adjust their behavior accordingly. Some bacteria produce food-digesting enzymes only in the presence of similar bacteria, thereby preventing competitors from consuming their meal.

Some animals possess sensitive hearing to help pinpoint prey and map the world

Bats and dolphins produce sound to reflect off surfaces and create a mental image of their surroundings. Owls' faces are dish-shaped to help funnel sounds to their ears, including that of mice moving along leaves or snow. Pinnipeds, such as seals and walruses, hear in both air and water.

Synthetic pheromones may protect coral reefs by attracting their predators

Researchers in Australia and Japan have developed these nontoxic chemicals to attract crown-of-thorns starfish, which consume corals that make up the Great Barrier Reef. As of 2026, synthetic pheromones have been shown to be effective in lab trials, and future field trials will attempt to lure starfish into areas for mass removal.

Coral reefs get their colors from zooxanthellae—microorganisms that line corals' digestive tracts and provide them with sugars in exchange for a home within this protective tissue.

Explore the animals that populate the depths of the ocean, from fish and coral in the first few hundred feet, all the way down to the bottom of the Mariana Trench.

Visualize the components of fireworks

This article provides animated diagrams depicting how different parts of fireworks function. The elements work together through timed mechanisms to produce desired effects.

An analysis of the logistic map, which shows how chaos can emerge from simple equations

When modeling systems such as the predator-prey cycle of an organism's population in an ecosystem, the logistic map function shows the population normally settles into an equilibrium value. However, at high reproduction and starvation rates, multiple such values arise, making it difficult to accurately model long-term population growth in some environments.

Fish populations in the Great Barrier Reef have increased after installing waterproof speakers on the ocean floor that played recordings of sounds from healthy coral reefs.

Learn how your body is, scientifically, like a firework with its own slow, controlled burn.

A simple infographic explaining how coral bleaching works

When corals are stressed by changes in conditions such as temperature, light, or nutrients, they expel the symbiotic algae living in their tissues, causing them to turn completely white.

Animation of a Gamma-ray burst, the brightest explosion in the universe

Gamma-ray bursts are some of the most luminous explosions in the universe, the result of a star collapsing on itself and emitting massive jets of particles. See a brief animation of the phenomenon here.

Stars appear to twinkle because turbulence in the motion of molecules in Earth's atmosphere causes light to bend and wiggle rapidly on its way to the surface—a phenomenon called scintillation.

Visualize how CRISPR-Cas9—a type of immune system used by single-celled organisms to attack invasive viruses—targets and makes precise changes to a gene's DNA.

Some Pokémon have been named after real and fictional organisms, while some real-world species have been named after Pokémon, such as Chilicola charizard and Binburrum zapdos.

Larger animals like giraffes, elephants, and blue whales have developed a unique defense against cancer, a phenomenon known as Peto's Paradox

Watch how viruses like Ebola can spill over from animals to humans—and vice-versa.

Power lines are dotted with large, brightly colored balls to improve the visibility of these thin wires to helicopters and small planes and help prevent potential crashes.

Learn how to read a prospectus, the juicy document that any company must file with the SEC before going public.

The Dracula character, now seen as the vampire archetype, was inspired by a seafood-induced nightmare its creator experienced.

See these 16 pieces of art evoking phobias of snakes, flying, spiders, and more. 

The animatronic shark from Steven Spielberg's 'Jaws,' the first modern blockbuster, was a complex underwater apparatus called 'Bruce.'

Crows are believed to have intelligence on par with a seven-year-old child and demonstrate complex behaviors, from problem-solving with tools to recognizing human faces.

Planarian flatworms are small, aquatic worms with exceptional regenerative capabilities. When cut, the worms can regenerate multiple bodies in a matter of weeks.

Read a deep dive on the 'all-purpose healing' peptide BPC-157.

Tattoos remain visible on your skin thanks to immune cells called macrophages

Objects can be 3D printed with light by projecting 2D computerized tomography (CT) scans onto rotating cylinders of resin, which solidify upon exposure.

SpongeBob exemplifies Aristotle's philosophy for living well because he understands that happiness doesn't come from external factors like money, recognition, or power.

Long before Major League Baseball began allowing instant replay for balls and strikes, an umpire reluctantly used the technology to determine whether a hit was a home run, a move that inadvertently ushered in a new era for the sport.

For centuries, it was common to sleep in two shifts: a few hours at the beginning of the night, and a longer period beginning around midnight

After her fellow cult members tried to kill her with an LSD-infused hamburger, one member of the Manson Family, the murderous cult led by Charles Manson, decided to testify against the group's leader.