Sailfish Are Master Hunters | Planet Earth | BBC Earth

Stunning footage of Sailfish three metres long closing in on Prey. Ever the resourceful hunter, they will only use just enough energy to make their kill, never wasting a fin stoke. What is more remarkable is how they can change colour to warn its companions or confuse its prey. Subscribe: bit.ly/BBCEarthSub
Taken From Planet Earth
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Welcome to BBC EARTH! The world is an amazing place full of stories, beauty and natural wonder. Here you'll find 50 years worth of astounding, entertaining, thought-provoking and educational natural history content. Dramatic, rare, and exclusive, nature doesn't get more exciting than this.
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[@MWSin1]

Sailfish: Okay, guys. Look alive. We've got Sir David with us today, so we want to put on a good show.

[@Love-jf7rs]

Show some to sail in sea sir.

[@Desertfox18]

School teachers to students when officials from the government visit the school:

[@code-dredd]

When your name is baitfish, that's when you know you're doomed from the start.

[@judahtribe7]

Or gator bait

[@momo1461]

That sailfish is white-male privileged and should be arrested for assaulting those female fish.

[@nefhelimwhat609]

MOMO stop being a troll

[@momo1461]

@@nefhelimwhat609 Nah.

[@fisher1634]

@@momo1461 Those poor bait fishes were just peacefully protesting under the ocean

[@joejitsu034]

The way the fish move as one single being amazes me every time. The natural world is fascinating!

[@lilt9604]

its fascinating and perfect

[@undertyped1]

Not exactly perfect, when fish turn into bait balls, it never ends well for the fish. If they all seperated and ran off at full speed, some of them would live. It's similar to the human mentallity when there is a gunman. We all cower, but if we all rushed him at once, we could take him out. Nature is far far far from perfect.

[@joejitsu034]

Sandy Hooker I think he was saying to watch as opposed to a defensive strategy.

[@tam-eremaime6299]

Sandy Hooker god i like your name

[@shibarinos7079]

Tam Ère Maime XD

[@wilrobles9824]

The narration is quite clear and vibrant considering he's underwater.

[@WaffleCake]

Nice

[@razorramoneljefe5956]

Stop being a smart ass

[@razorramoneljefe5956]

@Laughing Out Loud grow up chump

[@first1_out]

xd

[@amani_-mj5pb]

Razor ramon El jefe u stfu

[@wonderingfilms1201]

Nothing quite beats beautiful nature docs to overcome the stress of everyday life. And very few do it to the standard of the BBC, and Sir David. Truly thankful for their wonderful and consistent quality with nature documentaries. Unpoliticised, inoffensive insights to the world around us.

[@vykx88]

Deep Look is another good nature doc to watch with very good narrators.

[@LKAChannel]

Wilder Liddle Let me correct you, _nobody_ does it as good as the BBC and Sir David Attenborough

[@Axgoodofdunemaul]

You are so right. It gets me out of depression.

[@GrevenPiggelin]

@@nielsnielsen9013 Also wondering

[@isaacikaika]

I agree, although sometimes, I really don't think they know as much as they think they do. Like when they're narrating what an animal is thinking.

[@EinSophistry]

I can't be the only one who kinda wanted to see a sailfish jump out of the water and spear a seagull. R-right?

[@mufasa5458]

EinSophistry I feel ya, I love your kinda thinkin bro

[@nathanvayang]

EinSophistry I hoped that happened to lol😂😂

[@jakobkell7212]

like tiger sharks eat sea gulls who come too close to the water or sit on it

[@idrovepastyourhouse-9385]

I did too lol

[@Brian-tj5hq]

They're not gulls. Frigatebirds I think.

[@jcaustic0018]

How bad is life when your species is referred to as "bait" fish?!

[@aidencoleman5852]

True

[@padolveres9441]

Actually it's not as that bad, if you think about it properly.

[@padolveres9441]

@@frenne_dilley I mean it is kinda awful, sure. But I think those fish don't really mind our names.

[@halbronco7690]

@@padolveres9441 This was a very comprehensible joke friend try and give it another go.

[@lmSheep]

@@padolveres9441 yikes the joke went right past you 😂

[@CommissarKane]

What gets me is how did the cameraman film this without spooking the sailfish?

[@adoschtinad]

CommissarKane possibly some kind of remote device

[@simonem.7385]

Alexander Düring Yeah most likely

[@joejitsu034]

CommissarKane He was dressed as a Sardine 😂

[@simonem.7385]

joejitsu034 The sailfish would have eaten him lol 😂 😂 😂

[@SupaL33tKillar]

Simone M. Maybe be was dressed as a sailfish instead.

[@c.galindo9639]

It’s quite amazing how they captured such instances of nature and how they make it cinematically magnificent. Very breathtaking and marvelous creatures the sailfish are

[@captainiron0220]

You started to sound like Yoda at the end 💀

[@kix_501st]

@@captainiron0220 😂

[@adamemac]

What a coincidence.. I _also_ use as little energy as possible too! Everyday, all day.

[@lovebirdrica22]

Same

[@andrewheffel3565]

I am 66 years old. I have four rules for my life: 1. Never run when you can walk. 2. Never walk when you can stand. 3. Never stand when you can sit. 4. Never sit when you can lie down.

[@adamemac]

@@andrewheffel3565 😂😂 Love that! Wise words to live by!!

[@robbiejames1540]

But are you also the world's best sprinter? The fish are both lazy and fit.

[@leoperl]

never wasting a fin stroke.

[@kix_501st]

i’m 17 turning 18 soon but i remember watching this when i was like 5. this show is what fascinated me with the ocean. thank you BBC

[@shimshimma]

who else thought they were gonna use their noses to hunt?

[@rich1051414]

They do. Their bill is to knock their prey off balance long enough to scarf them down, not actually impale them, though.

[@shimshimma]

niiiiiice

[@Aleph-Noll]

so like a whip or somethng lol

[@rich1051414]

It under water, not land, but I guess a night stick would be an appropriate approximation.

[@Matty80822]

that and it adds mass plus better streamline body shape

[@deanjericevic8912]

The fastest fish in the ocean is the Indo-Pacific Sailfish, (Istiophorus platypterus) capable of 110 km/h (68 mph) over short periods. It also has a masterful maneuverability, note how it uses those extended ventral & pectoral fins & how it increases in body depth by raising its dorsal fin (sail). Evolution is amazing!

[@brentbryson215]

I caught an Atlantic Sailfish once. I hadn’t realized before that they have grooves in their back and chest that the dorsal and pectoral fins fold into. Like a plane with retractable landing gear. Absolutely incredible design.

[@deanjericevic8912]

@@brentbryson215 Yes, this adaptation you remark on Brent, is a way of reducing frictional drag. For the work done in oscilating the tail their is less energy expendature in overcoming drag & more energy input into increasing kinetic energy.

[@mimineustadt]

evolution is a hoax

[@fearghost4817]

Can't imagine what it would be like to be those bait fish...swimming away from the predators, knowing that your friends are being taken 1 by 1...and you could be next...

[@Escap1st7]

They have pretty much a hive-mind. Not individualistic at all.

[@andrep4805]

Falcon Wing there are no known hive-minds in nature. Fish use lateral lines to sense the movement and presence of other fish. They are pressure sensors. That's how they react like a group. Humans similarly use hands to communicate dance moves in salsa. Touch is easy to react to.

[@Escap1st7]

It's not an exact hive-mind, you're right. I was just simplifying it. Each individual has a set of rules they're supposed to follow, and do not break it because it will endanger their existence and the swarm's. If an individual dies, the swarm doesn't care, the individuals care more about the swarm than themselves, because without it, they will die, they will have a better chance of surviving being picked off one-by-one in a swarm than being stranded from a swarm. Since they all do this, though not without telepathic communication as in a hive-mind, it is pretty similar, though instead done with basic rules "programmed" into each individual. Pretty much a natural hive-mind. Like ant colonies, locust swarms. The pressure sensors allow this to happen, but how do the fish "know" to keep in group at all times, and not break and look only for themselves? Why do they maintain formation instead of all trying to go to the centre for safety? Because the swarm matters more. Hence why I said, "pretty much" a hive mind.

[@oscarguillen6]

Thats how i feel everyday on the streets lololol jk

[@icravekoreanbbq5229]

When the teacher asks a question and you have to avoid eye contact.

[@MyWintersPromise]

So they basically use turn signals?

[@demetriusmiddleton1246]

🤣

[@hafisismail4001]

Well,they are not BMWs..

[@lukilsn]

They are ahead of us

[@alexfleming6304]

😂

[@canadianuserthe]

Nice design

[@maxcovfefe]

It's astonishing how land animals and aquatic animals independently learned how to herd their prey. It's exactly the same effect in the end, just different strategies. This is truly fascinating! Thanks for sharing!

[@JVRottweil]

Hunger is a hell of a motivator

[@R0b0Tra1n]

Animal Fact: The sailfish swims up to 68 mph. That makes it the fastest fish in the world.

[@nintenjabennie7917]

Not true, it's more like 20mph. It is still one of the fastest swimmers though.

[@rohit-xr4fc]

@@nintenjabennie7917 not true, it is the fastest fish...simple Google would answer that

[@nintenjabennie7917]

@@rohit-xr4fc But it can't swim at 68 mph

[@asianpersuasion4901]

aren't dolphins the fastest?

[@vegasburgh2670]

@@asianpersuasion4901 Dolphins aren’t fish, they are marine mammals.

[@Faltzerbeast90]

nature amazes me everytime I see these videos. Its insane how animals "automatically" know what to hunt and survive off of. Its the circle of life in its basic instinct form

[@L4MIKAZ3]

It's all fun in games then the sail fish comes swimming towards your eye... **Dramatic music begins**

[@Nathan-jv2pr]

So iv been watching David Attenborough since I was 5 and love everything about his documentary’s. I’m now 31 and iv moved from Newcastle uk to Australia to start my own adventure and see in person some amazing wildlife that David brought to my attention as a child!

[@JMan-24]

He lost all credibility when they drove the Walrus herd off the cliff with their drones then used the footage in an episode blaming it on climate change.

[@lordbyron3603]

What’s even more astonishing is how you were able to get the footage.

[@laurenyoon3298]

i'd be that one fish moving left when the whole squad moving right

[@miloblackmetalhate]

That School of fish moved like magic... What a structure 😍

[@MrMightySunny]

I love to watching Sail Fish. Sunray's falling on the sailfish in blue water looks so beautiful like a moving SHIP

[@DelightLovesMovies]

Wow I never saw underwater footage of Sailfish before, thats awesome BBC Earth

[@goodlights7729]

It's amazing how these scene is captured on film! excellent job to the people behind the camera👌

[@IslandBlaze8]

for the divers to have got the chance to see this live and be there with these magnifecent fish is just Beautiful Beauty at its finest.

[@Okowa407]

I’m gonna Cry this is so Beautiful 🥲I’m Peruvian such BEAUTY I can’t explain it it gives me Nostalgia it speaks to my Soul like Déjà vu Like I been here Before

[@gaiustheconqueror6093]

There is a Sailfish/Selfish joke somewhere out there, in the depths of the internet.

[@Kento_nanami_the_2nd]

why do the greediest people always smell like fish? Because they're sailfish I'll...sea... myself out.

[@gaiustheconqueror6093]

Oh that is terrible. I love it.

[@banzai2759]

Don’t eat all the fish, that is very shellfish of you... Sorry

[@byrongonzalez1837]

@@banzai2759 SAILFISH*

[@robmangeri777]

When Bobby down south eats all the grits his momma lets him know he’s being sailfish.... bless his heart.

[@riskzerobeatz]

The world is so cruel yet so beautiful :D

[@RikkiTikkiTavi290]

You either eat or you're eaten

[@MrFichstar]

Hearing Sir Attenborough's voice on one of these nature clips, is always a bonus.

[@techbro_4309]

It always amazes me that we share this planet with these wonderful creatures!

[@donwilcox728]

The Earth really is amazing. So many different species. All with it's own survival skills. Just fantastic and mind boggling.

[@Calma123_]

So many indications that indicates that there must be a Creator. Impossible that all of this occured because of randomness. There is order and design everywhere.

[@TheMonkdad]

This is some stunning and amazing footage.

[@kendalllaughon9664]

Probably the Pacific Ocean, just gorgeous!! What an amazing world we live in, thanks BBC 💟

[@lostinsamoa]

The things nature comes up with to eat each other is amazing

[@CWTHenrik]

stunning footage! incredible nature!

[@rileytbear3339]

Me trying to sleep at 3am KZbin: Hey but did you know sword fish are good hunters!?! Me:ugh fine now time to watch fish videos for 3 more hours

[@mr.chipwhitley8770]

Gosh... these sailfish are so beautiful. Like... just look at 'em. Wow!

[@SssagaBenches4U]

jolly bean

[@akufromthefuture7159]

It's neat how they were taking turns instead of being greedy and sailfish.. Didn't know they could changed colors

[@romainlerch106]

Rip little fishes

[@JanetStarChild]

You want little fishes to be ripped apart? That's awfully brutal.

[@romainlerch106]

haha

[@BrianStyleDeath]

RoMain Lerch you have a kind heart, I can tell

[@lohancindy5442]

Rest in pieces

[@Don-ds3dy]

"oh look, ive been impaled"

[@Unclemoparman]

That music LOL

[@krusch75]

Loved the sound effect of windburst after an UFO... Swooosh, swooosh brilliant.

[@HebrewHakaishin]

I met my first sailfish in the taiwan strait a couple of years ago, I'll never forget that amazing experience.

[@Torrque]

What was its name? What dialect did it speak? Taiwanese or Mandarin? Don’t just leave us hanging. Tell us more.

[@HebrewHakaishin]

@@Torrque 🤣🤣🤣

[@kix_501st]

@@HebrewHakaishin NO JOKE TELL US MORE LOL

[@HebrewHakaishin]

@@kix_501st We are married now. The end

[@MichaelDespairs]

Driver's can't even merge lanes properly and look at that school of fish maneuver!

[@aehmerchant]

Splendid narration by Sr David Attenborough as always

[@nolby1758]

BBC earth seems to always get the rarest of shots/videos,very impressive.

[@LayVere_Marmoris2720]

I love sailfish 😍😍😍

[@vo1d854]

The cameraman was almost stabbed like 15 times

[@lrking8248]

Big respect to the camera guy that didnt stop chasing those sailfishes for better angles 😅

[@joliegarrett]

How they capture this stuff on film amazes me.

[@DeathbyPixels]

Are the fish they're hunting really called "Bait Fish?" If so, you've got pretty limited life choices if you're born as one of them.

[@jakobkell7212]

rather be a goldfish and go belly up on a bowl then being eaten alive as a snack

[@RikkiTikkiTavi290]

No those are sardines of some delineation. Bait fish is a general term for soft defenseless schooling fish that are fed upon.

[@WaffleCake]

Sailfish were my first favorite animal when I was 5, I used to draw them over the years as an indicator of my artistic abilities; amazing considering I just started drawing again for the first time in over a year a few minutes ago...

[@randyvanatta1457]

I love anything sir David Attenborough narrates...

[@jamescarter6676]

Amazing footage!!

[@BumbleBeeBeeRock]

beautiful

[@eliyahadad3744]

amazing

[@one-eye-guy-0074]

"To survive they must find food daily so there entire existence is on the move" sounds like every other animal

[@TSemasFl]

Nobody does nature shows better than Sir David.

[@emil6410]

But can they do it on a cold and rainy night in stoke?

[@Rick_Sanchez_C137_]

Vanitas Desmond I feel like this is a reference to something.... maybe BTILC?

[@Reubonics]

Tune into Catch of the Day to find out...

[@colinaudette291]

@@Rick_Sanchez_C137_ it’s a reference to football, stoke city fc

[@lozsurviver]

rip sardines

[@thooke222]

AmeerZx LoLMC that's what the sailfish did to them... ripped!

[@AMM0beatz]

This is the natural world. Amazing.

[@jphillips4509]

It’s really magnificent to see them free & feeding & not on the end of a fishing line. Ty.

[@michaelkavooras7664]

Yea sailfish are like the one thing I never wanna see a fisherman get. Their the most elegant one

[@MrCurly210]

P. Sherman 42 Wallaby way Sydney

[@WoWUndad]

so are the cameramen not scared of a herd of swordfish hunt-swimming right towards them?

[@fatahali4253]

The narrator is a legend 🙌 and never runs out of words 🙌 👏 ❤

[@Le_Mouton_Noir]

This voice, one day, will be missed a lot!

[@liznotlizard1572]

Love that these guys have the biological equivalent of turn signals. Letting each other know what their intentions are before their desired action. Would be great if people could do the same while driving.

[@ejbuhnieeee6148]

I'm so sorri

[@chisaquaticvibe6524]

Magnificent teamwork!

[@danielcorpuz1873]

I thought sailfish is a solitary animal I'm astonished seeing them hunting in groups 😮

[@williamhoyt4915]

How closely related are sailfish and marlins?

[@RikkiTikkiTavi290]

? Barracudas are NOT related to sailfish or marlin.

[@furryfeathers4108]

"it's rare to see so many in one place" not likely, with overfishing a serious problem-its going to be more and more common.

[@browngaddyoutdoors]

nope, Here in NC you often release them if you choose to kill one they have to be over 63 inches from the lower jaw to tail ;)

[@FMTF-makemoneyonline]

Can we for a moment stand still at the incredible camerawork here?

[@CitizenPain69]

The undersea world is so foreign that these videos almost look like animations; the photography is so crisp, sharp, and colorful!

[@bigpoppapump6602]

im hungry now.....

[@philiq18]

Their dorsal fin is the coolest thing. Reminds me of a Chinese junk.

[@Politickticktickin]

Huh

[@philiq18]

@@Politickticktickin it's a traditional Chinese ship.

[@backbencherstv992]

sailfish: we need air support! birds: approaching to the target, sir!

[@bas182341]

This is my planet 😢 so beautiful!

[@inquaanate2393]

It's crazy that the fastest water animal is quicker than the fastest land animal.

[@haroldthetalkingtree7509]

Morru Qu'aan And the fastest animal in the world is an avian

[@jacquesdelaharpe804]

Harold, The Talking Tree Cheetah is faster than a sailfish

[@superpasture]

I didn't see them eat one bait fish👀

[@user-oy9iq6hj1d]

Go into your settings and change your eye lids option to open

[@themerchant2579]

I saw at least one get eaten lol

[@stpeter2214]

Sir David has verbal cheque that cash. Class.

[@carlsmith4568]

In the vastness of the oceans, how does BBC find these rare and incredible events so often?

[@LazyScaper]

Silly fish staying together.

[@haroldthetalkingtree7509]

Plantje Its worse to swim alone past 20 sailfish. Stupid really

[@kaigrote8630]

*Facepalm*

[@Zaxares]

It's their only hope of survival. If they were to split up, the sailfish would just hunt each of them down one by one because they can't outswim the sailfish (they're the fastest marine fish in the world). Their only chance is to stick together and hope that they're one of the lucky ones who don't get picked off by the time the sailfish are full and swim off. (And near the end of the video, you can see the school of baitfish is down to about 1/2 or a 1/3 of its original size. That's still a 50% or 33% chance you'll make it, as opposed to nearly zero if you make a run for it alone.)

[@ForcedName]

when i was a kid i thought sailfish were sharks

[@josesuarez3435]

Es la belleza de la naturaleza 🇨🇴

[@Wesssss84]

That last fish at the end was both sad and inspiring

[@daviddavis746]

Like this before this video gets old

[@orangedac]

The small fishes are like taxpayers. The sailfish, birds..etc eating it are banksters, govt workers, all others trying to suck money out of the system.

[@arielthemermaid3576]

Government workers are sucking money out of the system? As a former government worker I wish I would’ve known that I could just take money whenever I felt like it, that would’ve made my job a lot more interesting...

[@doovstoover9703]

HOLY SHIRT THEY'RE SO COOOOOL

[@AB-fv4tr]

One of the most majestic creature on the planet

[@kevincody1976]

this is fake as hell

[@chrisfr2358]

kevin cody trolls...

[@ogithesergal4182]

kevin cody how would a nature documentary would be fake!?

[@gladiusbladeofthenorth9939]

edgy numetal kid They have been trolling people since Medieval times.......

[@JazzFlop212]

Paid actors

[@jacquesdelaharpe804]

Your beard is fake

[@sderuijter44]

Wat een prachtige beelden

[@shirleyzhang4309]

BBC Earth always reminds me that nature is so metal

[@con.troller4183]

Bait Fish: Did you just presume my life purpose?

[@HiTechDiver]

Very cool. While diving, I've been surrounded by so many bait fish, I couldn't see past them to find my way back to the anchor line. When their school erratically changes direction, it is almost dizzying.

[@jessesands4099]

Absolutely Magnificent These Sailfish Are Along With The Swordfish And The Marlin The Top 3 Billfishes!😀🐟🐟🐟🌅

[@oggucci2993]

I love the sailfish family

[@fatboyskinniefromdabronx8405]

Such magnificent fish!