These Are the Strangest Creatures Living Deep in the Ocean

The ocean is full of some incredibly odd creatures. It feels like the further you go down, the stranger and more alien-like they become. With so many interesting creatures, it makes you wonder, what are some of the oddest creatures out there? Given the wide variety of appearances and behaviors, the list of odd sea creatures is extensive. Read here to learn about some of the oddest creatures that live in the sea, and what makes them so odd!

1. Blobfish

The blobfish is one of the oddest-looking animals in the ocean. These animals have gelatinous bodies and very little muscle, giving them their blob-like appearance and name. This body structure helps them float above the sea floor, conserving energy. They are found in deep waters off the coasts of Australia and New Zealand, at depths of roughly 2,000 to 4,000 feet. What makes them look so blobby is decompression. When in their natural depth, they appear like normal fish, but decompression by bringing them to the surface is what causes them to look “melty.”

2. Vampire Squid

The vampire squid is another odd creature that gets its name from its appearance. Although called a squid, the vampire squid is not a true squid or octopus. Instead, they belong to their own order, Vampyromorphida, which sets them apart from true squids and octopuses. Their scientific name, Vampyroteuthis infernalis, literally means “vampire squid from hell.” These creatures have cloak-like webbing between their arms, and it glows in the dark! Despite their name, they feed on marine snow, which is organic debris that floats in the sea.

3. Blue Dragon

The blue dragon, known scientifically as Glaucus atlanticus, is a type of sea slug found floating on the ocean surface throughout the world. They are found in warm waters, mostly near Australia and South Africa. They are odd and unique for their camouflage, mimicking both the sky and the sea. The sea slug has a gas-filled sac in its stomach, meaning that it floats upside down. Its belly has a bright blue appearance to blend in with the sky, while its back is silvery-grey to blend with the ocean. While they are beautiful like a dragon in appearance, they are venomous and pack a painful sting. They acquire their venom by feeding on the Portuguese man o’ war, storing the stinging cells in their own bodies.

4. Mantis Shrimp

The mantis shrimp is famous for one main reason: its punching abilities. These shrimp live in tropical reefs and have strong claws that they use to punch. Their punches strike at roughly 50 miles per hour and are strong enough to break glass! When hunting prey, they can punch with the force of a bullet, making them scary and deadly. What makes them even odder, though, is their complex eyes. Their eyes are considered among the most complex in the animal kingdom because they can detect polarized light and a wide range of colors. They can polarize light and have up to 16 color channels. Simply put, they can see lights and colors that humans are incapable of seeing, specifically because we only have three color channels.

5. Frilled Shark

The frilled shark is strange for its appearance, one that has barely changed in the last 80 million years. These sharks are found roughly 2000 to 5000 feet deep in the waters of the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. They are often described as a blend between a shark and an eel. There are many theories as to why their appearance hasn’t changed, but it is mostly attributed to the lack of competition in their environment. They have evolved to be extremely successful in deep-sea environments, meaning that they need to evolve less compared to other deep-sea organisms.

6. Immortal Jellyfish

As their name suggests, these jellyfish are unusual because they are technically immortal. Immortal jellyfish have a unique bodily mechanism that allows them to live forever. This process is called transdifferentiation, the ability to change adult cells into different cells, such as muscle cells into nerve cells. When the jellyfish experiences stress, such as a lack of food, it will revert to its juvenile form to avoid dying. While they are immortal in time, they are not invincible and can die from injury or predation. They are the only known animal capable of repeatedly reverting to their juvenile form through this process, a unique form of biological immortality that scientists are eager to study.

7. Sea Pig

The sea pig is odd in appearance, apparent in its name. They are found on the abyssal plains in the deepest parts of the ocean, at depths of up to 22,000 feet. They have soft and squishy bodies with tube-like legs that give them their name. Tentacles around its mouth give it an alien-like appearance. They are often found in groups of up to hundreds at a time, almost like an alien population gathering together.

8. Leafy Sea Dragon

Similar to the sea pig, the leafy sea dragon gets its name because of its appearance. These fish have a unique camouflage that resembles floating seaweed. The fins are leaf-like and complex, making it hard for predators to differentiate between the fish and seaweed. They are found in the coastal waters of southern and western Australia. Like seahorses, male leafy sea dragons carry the eggs until they hatch, a trait that is rare among sea creatures.

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