NATURAL WORLD FACTS
WELCOME TO
NATURAL WORLD FACTS
ABOUT NWF
I'm Leo Richards, and Natural World Facts is my life's work and passion project; it's a vessel for my wildlife film-making, science communication, writing, and beyond, and I'm keen for it to be as collaborative as possible!
Please get in touch if you would like to work with me on any nature-related film or project. Click below to learn more about my work, skillset, and to contact me.
Wildlife Films
I create wildlife documentaries and short films on YouTube, including a mix of solo projects and collaborations with passionate individuals, wildlife media groups, and world-leading exploration organisations.
Midwater deep-sea organisms
Footage by Schmidt Ocean Institute, from our collaborative film Robots in the Deep.
Featured Video
CHEMOSYNTHETIC OASES
A feature-length movie exploring the peculiar life that thrives at sites of chemosynthesis in the deep sea, from the towering chimneys of hydrothermal vents to the surreal landscapes of cold seeps, and the sites of partial chemosynthesis that form at whale-falls and sunken wood.
The deep ocean is a place of wonder, and challenges for life. With minimal resources, no sunlight, and only a slow trickle of nutrients making its way down here as 'marine snow', life must find unique ways to exist in the depths. Food is scarce, and with very little energy, survival in the depths is a challenge for any creature. There are some locations in the deep that life has clung to for millions of years, and where food and energy is ever abundant.
2. Night on the Reef
Episode 2 turns everything on its head to explore the peculiar alien-like world of suspension feeders that emerge after dark to feed on the vertically migrating plankton.
4. A Troubled Paradise
Featuring interviews with cameraman Edi, who has spent 30 years diving in the region, we will discuss the anthropogenic impacts affecting the Coral Triangle.
1. The Coral Triangle
Episode 1 will serve as an overview of the reef ecosystem, and its incredible colourful inhabitants.
3. The Sandy Bottom
We will explore the seemingly desolate sandy ecosystem that exists adjacent to the reef, hosting unique assemblages of life.
2. The Midnight Zone
Below a depth of 1,000 metres, the light of the sun is altogether absent, and a host of dramatic animals take to the stage.
4. Seamounts and Canyons
Breaking up the uniformity of the abyssal plain, the seamounts and canyons provide solid ground where colourful corals and gardens of sponge create complex reefs.
1. The Twilight Zone
Just below 100 metres, the ocean midwater becomes a world of gloom, where dazzling bioluminescent drifters and fish of bright silver shimmer in the twilight expanse.
3. The Abyssal Plain
Beneath the crushing pressure of kilometres of water lies a great sea of silt and clay, where curious mud-dwellers abound.
5. Hydrothermal Vents
Where tectonic plates move apart, towering cities can be found in the depths; vents of superheated water, hosting incredible life.