Barracudas at Shark Reef, Ras Mohammed National Park, Sinai Peninsula, Egypt Jul 27, 2025

Barracudas at Shark Reef, Ras Mohammed National Park, Sinai Peninsula, Egypt

Being surrounded by a shimmering spiral of silver—that"s what it feels like to encounter a school of blackfin barracuda at Shark Reef in Ras Mohammed National Park, Egypt. These streamlined fish, marked by sharp V-shaped stripes, move in near-perfect unison. Their slow, deliberate spirals aren"t random—they"re an evolutionary strategy that offers both safety in numbers and an edge in hunting. Blackfin barracudas are found throughout tropical waters, from the Red Sea to the central Pacific. During the day, they gather in tight, coordinated groups near the reef, scattering at dusk to pursue prey.

© Alex Mustard/Nature Picture Library

palette

Today in History

Jul 27, 2018Composite image of a lunar eclipse
Jul 27, 2019Longer days mean warmer sand
Jul 27, 2020A stunning sight in Mexico s wilderness
Jul 27, 2021Maybe we should be looking up
Jul 27, 2022Mada in Saleh, Saudi Arabia
Jul 27, 2023Arc de Triomphe du Carrousel and the Louvre Pyramid
Jul 27, 2024Vineyards in the Mosel Valley, Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany
Jul 27, 2026Tiffany Dome, Chicago Cultural Center, Illinois

More Desktop Wallpapers:

Aug 8, 2021Bridge to infinity
Jun 28, 2021A medieval celebration in the Mediterranean
Jun 24, 2019A summertime light show
Oct 18, 2018Fall comes to the Last Frontier
Jan 5, 2023Harbin International Ice and Snow Sculpture Festival, China
Mar 29, 2020The borrowed days are here
Dec 22, 2021Illuminating Annecy
Aug 11, 2021Everyone s watching the Perseids
Aug 2, 2021This reef is nowhere near the sea…
Oct 17, 2024Frost-covered dunes on Mars
Oct 4, 2026World Space Week begins
Sep 12, 2024World Dolphin Day
Dec 12, 2019On the lookout for Sheep-Cote Clod
Dec 10, 2023Sand dunes in the Sahara, Algeria
Nov 3, 2025World Jellyfish Day
Dec 29, 2024Borobudur Temple, Java, Indonesia
Dec 18, 2025Celebrating 54 years of Capitol Reef National Park
Jan 14, 2019An island oasis in the Indian Ocean
Jan 19, 2024Plitvice Lakes National Park, Croatia
Dec 5, 2022Saint Nicholas Day in Verbier, Switzerland
May 14, 2020Green fields of grain
Feb 8, 2024Mount Hood, Oregon
Jan 21, 2023Kangaroo family for National Hugging Day
Apr 4, 2021A yearly sign that spring has sprung
Aug 21, 2023Discovery Day in Yukon, Canada
Mar 16, 2020I ll call for pen and ink
Jul 30, 2018Children at play for International Day of Friendship
Jun 4, 2021Islands that turned the tide
Nov 25, 2018‘Ciao’ from Varenna
Mar 1, 2018Stari Most in Mostar, Bosnia and Herzegovina