The Haenyeo women who dive deep into the East China Sea to harvest sea urchins and shellfish spend the most time underwater of any humans ever studied — one to five hours a day, researchers report ...

Often likened to mermaids in media reports and popular culture, South Korea’s famed Haenyeo (“sea women”) spend much of the day underwater, diving without scuba gear to collect abalone, octopus, kelp ...

On Jeju Island, 50 miles south of the Korean peninsula, senior women regularly dive up to 60 feet beneath the ocean’s surface. They collect sea urchins, sea snails called abalone and other food—and ...

An island 50 miles (80 kilometers) off the southern tip of the Korean Peninsula is home to a unique and celebrated community of women: the Haenyeo. These women dive year-round off Jeju Island, ...

A group of female South Korean free divers on Jeju Island, known as the Haenyeo, exit the water after catching marine snails in November 2015. Chung Sung-Jun / Getty Images On Jeju Island, 50 miles ...