Marine petroleum seismic surveys involve imaging sub-sea geology using intense impulse signals generated every 5 to 10 s by a series of metal tubes (air guns) which simultaneously release high pressure air. An array of air guns produces a signal with a rapid rise in pressure for a short period analogous to bursting balloons on a large scale. The impulse signal has the capability of damaging biological structures at short range, causing behavioural responses at short to medium ranges and masking other signal types at all ranges. Combined, the authors have ran experiments to measure air gun signal impacts on plankton, squid, octopus, scallops, lobster, fin-fish, sea turtles and humpback whales. Smaller less motile fauna can suffer severe physiological trauma from air gun exposure, usually not creating immediate mortality but debilitating fauna and increasing longer term mortality. Marine mammals tend to self mitigate with behavioural responses to either avoid seismic surveys or possibly attract them. Many groups with vested interests expend great efforts into trying to debunk experimental results which combined with fisherman versus petroleum conflicts leads to interesting and informative observations on how humans respond to information they do not wish to believe.