# Sunken Treasure

An episode of [Animal Tales: The Kids' Story Podcast](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1644596989), 23 Mar 2026, 17 min.

Audio: https://dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/api.spreaker.com/download/episode/70690003/at480_sunkentreasure_mixdown.mp3

A great white shark, a humpback whale and a jellyfish discover a shipwreck! Written especially for this podcast by Simon. If you enjoyed this story, please do leave us a review. And, if you'd like to suggest an animal for a future Animal Tales story, you can do so by emailing podcast@animaltales.uk. We would love to hear from you. Animal Tales Books! Collections of Animal Tales children’s stories are available to buy exclusively at Amazon. Simply search for Animal Tales Short Stories or follow this link: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0CLJQZ9C9?binding=paperback&ref=dbs_dp_sirpi Become a PREMIUM Subscriber You can now enjoy Animal Tales by becoming a Premium Subscriber. This gets you: • All episodes in our catalogue advert free • Bonus Premium-only episodes (one per week) which will never be used on the main podcast • We guarantee to use one of your animal suggestions in a story You can sign up through Apple Podcasts or through Supercast and there are both monthly and yearly plans available. Discover a brand new story every Monday, Wednesday and Friday – just for you! You can find more Animal Tales at www.animaltales.uk A Note About The Adverts In order to allow us to make these stories we offer a premium subscription and run adverts. The adverts are not chosen by us, but played automatically depending on the platform you listen through (Apple Podcasts, Spotify, etc) and the country you live in. The adverts may even be different if you listen to the story twice. We have had a handful of instances where an advert has played that is not suitable for a family audience, despite the podcast clearly being labelled for children. If you’re concerned about an advert you hear, please contact the platform you are listening to directly. Spotify, in particular, has proven problematic in the past, for both inappropriate adverts and the volume at which the adverts play. If you find this happening, please let Spotify know via their Facebook customer care page. As creators, we want your child’s experience to be a pleasurable one. Running adverts is necessary to allow us to operate, but please do consider the premium subscription service as an alternative – it’s advert free.

## Transcript

[0:12] Speaker 1: Yale. Hello, my name's Josephine and this is the Animal
[0:18] Speaker 1: Tales podcast, where you suggest the animals featured in our stories.
[0:23] Speaker 1: There are new tales to enjoy every Monday and Wednesday,
[0:26] Speaker 1: with a third premium only story every Friday. Please continue
[0:31] Speaker 1: to share Animal Tales with your friends and leave us
[0:34] Speaker 1: reviews where you can. Eden is from New South Wales
[0:39] Speaker 1: in Australia and she would like a story featuring a
[0:42] Speaker 1: great white shark, a humpback whale and a jelly fish.
[0:47] Speaker 1: You can learn more about these creatures in the animal
[0:49] Speaker 1: facts after the story. Okay, are you ready? That's good,
[0:55] Speaker 1: then I'll begin Sunken Treasure. Once upon a time, a
[1:02] Speaker 1: pirate ship got caught in a dreadful storm. Despite the
[1:06] Speaker 1: crew's best efforts, the ship was blown against the rocks
[1:10] Speaker 1: of a small island, and there the ship and all
[1:13] Speaker 1: its crew were lost. Days later, the skies were clear
[1:18] Speaker 1: and the sea calm, as if the storm had never happened.
[1:23] Speaker 1: Items of wreckage washed up on the island shore were
[1:27] Speaker 1: all that suggested that the pirate ship had ever been there.
[1:32] Speaker 1: But below the waves, it was a different story. What
[1:36] Speaker 1: is it? Asked Stephanie, a great white shark as she
[1:40] Speaker 1: swam to and fro in the water. It looks like
[1:45] Speaker 1: a boat, said Audrey, a humpback whale. That can't be right,
[1:50] Speaker 1: objected Stephanie. Boats sail on the surface, they don't sit
[1:55] Speaker 1: on the sea bed. Even so, persisted Audrey, it still
[2:01] Speaker 1: looks like a boat. Remember, I have to go up
[2:04] Speaker 1: to the surface to breathe, and when I lift my
[2:07] Speaker 1: head into the air, I get to see all of
[2:10] Speaker 1: the boat, not just the underside that you see. Then
[2:15] Speaker 1: where are all the people, asked the Great White Shark.
[2:19] Speaker 1: People sail boats, don't they? I can't see a single one.
[2:24] Speaker 1: I don't know, admitted the humpback whale. Maybe they've swum
[2:29] Speaker 1: up to catch a breath like I do. The water
[2:33] Speaker 1: wasn't very deep this close to the rocky edge of
[2:35] Speaker 1: the island, deep enough to just cover the tallest mast.
[2:40] Speaker 1: They could both see that there are no people swimming there.
[2:44] Speaker 1: Maybe they're inside, suggested Stephanie, hiding. Should we take a
[2:51] Speaker 1: closer look, wondered Audrey, a little nervously. I'm not so sure,
[2:57] Speaker 1: Stephanie replied. You know what people are like, with all
[3:01] Speaker 1: their harpoons and nets and big booming guns. What if
[3:06] Speaker 1: they're trying to trick us. I'll do it, said a
[3:10] Speaker 1: cheerful voice from behind them. It was a pretty pink
[3:14] Speaker 1: and yellow jellyfish with a long streamerlike tentacles trailing beneath her.
[3:20] Speaker 1: But you're just a jellyfish, said Audrey. I'm a large
[3:25] Speaker 1: humpback whale, and Stephanie here is an enormous great white shark.
[3:30] Speaker 1: What makes you so brave? I don't think that there
[3:34] Speaker 1: are any people on board that boat, said the jellyfish.
[3:39] Speaker 1: You can't possibly know that, said Stephanie. People can be
[3:44] Speaker 1: mean and cunning. I bet they're waiting quietly in there
[3:47] Speaker 1: to spring out and surprise us when we least expect it.
[3:52] Speaker 1: Then let's see, shall we, suggested the jellyfish as she
[3:56] Speaker 1: swam towards the sunken ship. Jellyfish are not fast at swimming,
[4:02] Speaker 1: so several tense moments passed as she crossed the distance
[4:06] Speaker 1: and inspected the empty deck. Can you see anyone, asked
[4:12] Speaker 1: the great white shark, trying to keep her voice down. Nothing,
[4:18] Speaker 1: said the jellyfish as she inspected an open hatchway. There's
[4:22] Speaker 1: nobody here. Cautiously, the great white shark and the humpback
[4:27] Speaker 1: whale joined her, well, I must say that really was
[4:32] Speaker 1: very brave of you, said Audrey. Well done. The three
[4:38] Speaker 1: sea creatures introduced themselves, revealing that the colorful jellyfish was
[4:43] Speaker 1: called Eden. I still don't understand why the people have
[4:48] Speaker 1: left their boat here, said Stephanie the great White Shark,
[4:52] Speaker 1: as she circled the submerged deck. Perhaps they didn't want
[4:57] Speaker 1: it any longer, suggested Audrey the humpback. Does that mean
[5:02] Speaker 1: we can have it, asked Stephanie. But what are we
[5:06] Speaker 1: going to do with a boat, asked Audrey. I don't know,
[5:12] Speaker 1: shrugged the shark. I've never had a boat before. What
[5:17] Speaker 1: do you suppose is inside? Asked Eden as she drifted
[5:21] Speaker 1: above the open hatchway. What do people do inside their boats?
[5:27] Speaker 1: Probably sharpen their harpoons and mend their nets, said Audrey grumpily.
[5:33] Speaker 1: That's the last place I want to go, I have
[5:37] Speaker 1: to agree, said Stephanie. I wouldn't want to get stuck
[5:41] Speaker 1: down there amongst all those sharp points. I think I
[5:45] Speaker 1: might take a look, said the little jellyfish. You can't
[5:50] Speaker 1: be serious, spluttered the humpback whale. Oh I am, insisted Eden.
[5:57] Speaker 1: Wait here, I'll let you know what I find Stunned
[6:02] Speaker 1: by her bravery and confidence, The whil and the shark
[6:06] Speaker 1: watched as the jellyfish descended into the body of the ship.
[6:11] Speaker 1: Did you see that, whispered Stephanie. That jellyfish is the
[6:16] Speaker 1: bravest sea creature I've ever met. In truth, it wasn't
[6:22] Speaker 1: that Eden was brave. It was more down to the
[6:25] Speaker 1: fact that she was careful. Being a slower swimmer, she
[6:30] Speaker 1: had a little more time to think about what she
[6:32] Speaker 1: was doing, weigh up the dangers, and consider the facts.
[6:37] Speaker 1: Like Audrey the humpback, she knew that people need air
[6:41] Speaker 1: to breathe, so she knew that they would not be
[6:44] Speaker 1: on board, And with no people on board, she knew
[6:48] Speaker 1: that if she proceeded slowly, she could explore without running
[6:52] Speaker 1: into trouble. For the most part, below deck was dark
[6:57] Speaker 1: and hard to be sure of where she was going.
[7:00] Speaker 1: But what was odd was that below her appeared to
[7:03] Speaker 1: be lighter, not darker. She swam down to investigate. It's
[7:10] Speaker 1: all gone very quiet, worried Audrey as she floated above
[7:14] Speaker 1: the deck. Do you think she's all right? I think
[7:19] Speaker 1: something's happened to her, said Stephanie. It's the end of
[7:23] Speaker 1: her I'm quite sure, we'll never see that brave little
[7:27] Speaker 1: jelly fish again. I'm back, called Eden, as she rose
[7:33] Speaker 1: up through the water. But she didn't reappear through the hatchway,
[7:38] Speaker 1: but from the far side of the ship. But but
[7:43] Speaker 1: stammered Stephanie, how did you get over there? There's a
[7:48] Speaker 1: great big hole in the boat's side, Eden answered, I
[7:52] Speaker 1: swam right through it, A hole that's unusual for a boat,
[7:58] Speaker 1: observed Audrey. Perhaps that's why the people didn't want it
[8:02] Speaker 1: any more. Anyway, I found lots of these, said Eden,
[8:08] Speaker 1: lifting a circle of gold up in a tentacle. The
[8:12] Speaker 1: coin glinted where the submerged sunlight touched it. That's gold,
[8:19] Speaker 1: said the great white shark. People like gold. I can
[8:24] Speaker 1: see why, said Eden. It's very pretty. They fight over
[8:30] Speaker 1: it and hoard it and swap it for other things,
[8:34] Speaker 1: continued the shark. What sort of things, asked Audrey, anything,
[8:41] Speaker 1: said Stephanie. You can swap it for absolutely anything you want.
[8:47] Speaker 1: And the more gold you have, the more things you
[8:49] Speaker 1: can swap it for. Eden. Did you say you'd found
[8:54] Speaker 1: more of those down there, asked Audrey. Oh, yes, lots
[8:59] Speaker 1: and lots of them, replied the jellyfish, And strings of
[9:04] Speaker 1: pearls and colorful gems and so much more, all in
[9:08] Speaker 1: a big wooden box. It's strange that they left all
[9:13] Speaker 1: this gold behind when they decided that they didn't want
[9:15] Speaker 1: their boat any longer, pointed out Audrey. Perhaps they had
[9:21] Speaker 1: too much, wondered Stephanie. Which is good because if they
[9:25] Speaker 1: don't want it, then we can have it. What are
[9:29] Speaker 1: we going to do with gold, asked Audrey. I just
[9:34] Speaker 1: told you, said Stephanie, patiently, swap it for things that
[9:39] Speaker 1: we want, like what, asked Eden. I don't know, shrugged
[9:46] Speaker 1: the shark. Well what do people swap it for, asked Audrey.
[9:53] Speaker 1: Ah Well, clothes and swords and harpoons and nets, Stephanie said,
[10:01] Speaker 1: after a good think. But we don't need those things,
[10:06] Speaker 1: pointed out Eden. That's true, agreed Stephanie. But there must
[10:12] Speaker 1: be something we need. And who exactly do we swap
[10:16] Speaker 1: the gold with, asked Eden. People, I suppose, replied the
[10:22] Speaker 1: great White. But people live on the land, said the
[10:27] Speaker 1: jelly fish, and we live in the sea. I can't
[10:31] Speaker 1: see how that would work, especially when we don't actually
[10:35] Speaker 1: need anything, added the whale, Even so, Eden said. Studying
[10:42] Speaker 1: the gold coin closely, it is very pretty all of
[10:47] Speaker 1: the things in the box I found are it would
[10:50] Speaker 1: be a shame to just leave them down there. What
[10:54] Speaker 1: are you suggesting, asked Stephanie. Wait there, said Eden, I'll
[11:00] Speaker 1: be right back. The jellyfish made several trips, returning each
[11:06] Speaker 1: time with more and more items from the treasure chest. Stephanie.
[11:10] Speaker 1: The great white shark had a long pearl necklace draped
[11:14] Speaker 1: around the fin on her back, and had her tail
[11:17] Speaker 1: decorated with precious gems. Edan even found a tiara that
[11:22] Speaker 1: sat very nicely upon the shark's head. Audrey's broad back
[11:28] Speaker 1: was covered in shimmering coins like golden scales, while Eden
[11:33] Speaker 1: dressed her tentacles with gold and silver bracelets and rings.
[11:38] Speaker 1: Wear so sparkly, said the great white Shark. I don't
[11:43] Speaker 1: think I've ever looked so fabulous. Eden had even found
[11:49] Speaker 1: a diamond studded hand mirror that she was presently angling
[11:53] Speaker 1: so that Audrey could see the golden pattern upon her back.
[11:57] Speaker 1: I barely recognize myself, said the humpback wail. They really
[12:03] Speaker 1: did look amazing, and it was only when they started
[12:06] Speaker 1: to move around that it all went wrong. First, the
[12:11] Speaker 1: rubies and emeralds slid off Stephanie's tail. Then Audrey lost
[12:16] Speaker 1: all the coins from her back when she went up
[12:19] Speaker 1: to the surface for a lungful of air. Then Eden,
[12:23] Speaker 1: who was used to weighing next to nothing, began to
[12:26] Speaker 1: struggle with the heavy objects she was carrying. As fun
[12:31] Speaker 1: as this has been, said Audrey. I don't think we're
[12:35] Speaker 1: made for wearing jewelry. I agree, said Stephanie, as she
[12:40] Speaker 1: shook off what was left of her treasure. But I
[12:44] Speaker 1: enjoyed seeing you all dressed up. We may as well
[12:48] Speaker 1: leave it all here, said Eden. You never know a
[12:52] Speaker 1: human might find it one day. Oh, I just saw one,
[12:58] Speaker 1: said Audrey. Suddenly, when I swam up to take a breath,
[13:02] Speaker 1: it was one of the little ones, A girl. I think.
[13:06] Speaker 1: Did she look like she was about to come down here,
[13:09] Speaker 1: asked Stephanie. I don't think so, said the whale. She
[13:14] Speaker 1: was very thin and small, even for a human. She
[13:18] Speaker 1: was rummaging around amongst the things that are washed up
[13:21] Speaker 1: on the beach. We don't even know if she wants
[13:25] Speaker 1: any of the gold, said Stephanie. She probably has lots already.
[13:31] Speaker 1: I didn't see any, answered Audrey. And her clothes were
[13:36] Speaker 1: much scruffier than I'm used to seeing. We should take
[13:40] Speaker 1: the gold up to the human, decided Eden. Then she
[13:44] Speaker 1: can choose for herself if she wants it. Good idea,
[13:49] Speaker 1: said Stephanie. I can carry lots in my mouth. Ha ha,
[13:55] Speaker 1: laughed Audrey. But not as much as me. And so
[14:00] Speaker 1: it was a short time later that a girl from
[14:04] Speaker 1: a very poor family that lived on the island discovered
[14:08] Speaker 1: the first of the gold coins. It was sticking out
[14:11] Speaker 1: of the sand near to the water line. She bent
[14:15] Speaker 1: down to pluck it up, thinking she must have been mistaken,
[14:19] Speaker 1: but no, it really was a gold coin there for
[14:23] Speaker 1: the taking. She dropped to her knees in the gentle
[14:27] Speaker 1: surf and swiftly spotted another two of the coins, alongside
[14:32] Speaker 1: a big, fat emerald. Fortunately, a woven basket was one
[14:38] Speaker 1: of the very first things she'd found while beech combing
[14:41] Speaker 1: that day, so she was soon piling in treasure until
[14:45] Speaker 1: the basket was almost too heavy to lift. She struggled
[14:49] Speaker 1: away with it, calling to her parents as she left. Well,
[14:55] Speaker 1: she looked happy, reported Audrey, as she ducked back down
[15:00] Speaker 1: beneath the waves. I think we did the right thing there, yes,
[15:06] Speaker 1: nodded Eden. I think we did. Humans can make better
[15:10] Speaker 1: use of gold than we can. Do you think she
[15:14] Speaker 1: might want the boat as well, wondered Stephanie. I mean
[15:19] Speaker 1: it's right there, and nobody else seems to want it.
[15:23] Speaker 1: We gave her plenty of gold, said Eden. If she
[15:27] Speaker 1: really wants a boat, then I guess she can get
[15:30] Speaker 1: herself a new one. Fair enough, said the great white shark.
[15:35] Speaker 1: As the three friends began to swim away. It was
[15:39] Speaker 1: only then that Eden saw the tiara still on Stephanie's head.
[15:45] Speaker 1: She almost said something, then decided against it. After all,
[15:50] Speaker 1: the great white shark did look rather good in it.
[15:58] Speaker 1: Animal fat. Great white sharks can have up to three
[16:03] Speaker 1: hundred teeth arranged in as many as seven rows. As
[16:08] Speaker 1: they lose the teeth at the front, there are always
[16:11] Speaker 1: more growing in the rose behind. Humpback whales don't have
[16:16] Speaker 1: any teeth. Instead, they have something called a bayleen plate
[16:20] Speaker 1: that hangs from their upper jaw. It acts like a sieve,
[16:25] Speaker 1: allowing them to squeeze out the water but trap the
[16:28] Speaker 1: small fish and krill inside their mouths. There are over
[16:33] Speaker 1: two thousand different types of jellyfish swimming around in our oceans.
[16:39] Speaker 1: They are very simple creatures, meaning that their bodies have
[16:42] Speaker 1: no teeth, no heart, no blood, no bones and no brain.
[16:49] Speaker 1: Those were great suggestions, Eden. We hope you enjoyed the
[16:53] Speaker 1: story and thank you to all of you across the
[16:55] Speaker 1: world for listening to it. Remember, if you prefer your
[17:00] Speaker 1: stories advert free, then please consider our premium service through
[17:05] Speaker 1: Apple or supercarst for a tiny fee. The stories are
[17:09] Speaker 1: advert free. Join us next time for another great animal tale. Goodbye,

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