Life under water has always seemed fascinating to most people. Various kind of living creatures-fish, turtle, sea-horse, dolphin, whale etc. can leave you spellbound and astonished. Moreover, it’s really interesting that some of these aquatic animals are too adorable and cute that the onlookers are mesmerised by their delightful appeal. Here’s a list of top 10 cutest marine animals:

10. Bottlenose dolphin

Bottlenose dolphins are known for their friendliness and interaction with the humans. That’s why they are commonly used for tricks and shows at aquariums. Most importantly, they are intelligent creatures and their adorable smile built into its snout can easily amuse the onlookers. They usually live in groups of 10-30 members, also known as pods.Moreover, they are also trained by armies and militaries to locate enemies’ submarines as well as sea mines.

9. Chinstrap Penguin

Commonly found in the islands around Antarctica, penguins are flightless birds and thus spend most of their time in water.  They are also popular as “bearded penguins” or “ringed penguins”. Considered as the most aggressive species among the penguins, they have black flippers with white edge and reddish brown eyes.

8. Beluga whale

Beluga whale are found only in the cold waters of the Arctic region. These whales are highly sociable. Moreover, these pale whales with their dark eyes and big heads easily amaze the onlookers. Owing to its high-pitched twitter, it is also known as beluga or sea canary. Its sense of hearing are highly developed and advanced. Despite this, this specie of the whales contains the highest percentage of blubber. They are migratory animals and spend most of their winters in ice-caps around Arctic region while they move to warm waters in coastal areas and estuaries.

7. Lionfish

These striped lion-fish have morose expressions that make them look adorable to all. Though they have spikes but they aren’t venomous. Spikes are primarily meant to safeguard them against predators. Commonly found in the West Atlantic and Caribbean Sea, the lionfish can normally grow up to 15 inches but the average length is 1 foot. Also called turkey fish, they are also popular as food and aquarium animals.

6. Sea otter

Sea otters are furry mammals and are native to the North Pacific Ocean. They swim around their backs in the sea and balance foods in their bellies while they chew away. Unfortunately, they were widely hunted for the trade of their fur that had caused a drastic decline in their population. However, hunting of sea otters has been banned now. They are amongst the smallest marine species and usually weigh around 22-45 kg. They have the heaviest mustelid.

5. Green turtle

The green sea turtle is the largest turtle of the family Cheloniidae and usually found in Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. The turtle’s body is covered by green fat beneath it carapace. Despite this, it has a pair of paddle-like flippers. Since they are largely herbivorous, the adults live in shallow lagoons and feed on sea grasses. They are also migratory animals and interestingly many islands around the world are known as “Turtle islands” as the green turtles live on them. Moreover, the carapace of the turtle inhabits various colour patterns that change with the passage of time as the turtle grows.

4. Harp seal

Harp seals are usually white as babies and their body colour changes to grey as they are fully grown. Their dark black eyes staring out of their light faces are too adorable. Found in the Atlantic and Arctic Ocean, they have black harp shaped markings on their bones. Owing to its large eyes, its sense of vision is highly developed. They are highly sociable as well noisy at times. They mostly live in colonies. Moreover, their whiskers on either side of the snout are another characteristic feature of Harp seal.

3. Octopus

These slimy, sticky and slinky eight armed molluscs do not have any skeleton but their ability to squeeze their body through tight spaces can be quite amusing as well.  They are also among the most intelligent creatures living on the earth. One of their interesting characteristic is expulsion of ink to defend themselves against predators. An octopus can easily camouflage its body too. However, they are venomous and can prove to be dangerous to the humans. Interestingly, octopus has an excellent sense of touch and it can taste what it touches. Isn’t it bewildering?

2. Harbour seal

Harbour seals are mostly found along the coasts of North America, Asia and Europe. They are widely popular as they can intelligently use their whiskers to predict the movement of their prey. Usually brown or tan coloured creatures, they possess distinctive V-shaped nostrils. Their blubber helps them to maintain their body temperature under water. Usually females are smaller than males.

1. Walrus

These huge mammals look adorable because of their flippers and long-curved tusks. While males use their elongated teeth to fight for their dominance, females use them for digging in ice. They can weigh more than 2,000 kg and live mostly in shallow waters. Unfortunately, they are also hunted for their blubber, tusks, meat etc.  While young walruses are deep brown in colour, they grow paler as they mature. Walruses appear almost white under water which is really fascinating. Scientifically, their blood vessels constrict under water and thus they appear white.