Most ELUSIVE Sea Creatures

Every single year, people are making new discoveries in our oceans, and that’s no surprise when you think that the ocean covers 70% of earth. Scientists have tried to work out how many more species there is to still discover in the oceans, but as you can guess, that’s a pretty challenging task. Today we have a look at some of the rarer species that live in the waters, and you’ll be glad that they’re rare, because many of them are pretty mean looking! So, grab your scuba gear… we’re going deep-sea diving!

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9 - Not your regular fish and chips…
If you had to catch one of these, you’d be able to feed your entire neighborhood. This is an oarfish, also sometimes referred to as sea dragon. These seriously long fish are found in oceans across the world, yet although you find them anywhere, it’s finding them that’s the challenge. They are extremely rare. One of these fish made it into the Guinness Book of World Records, and measured 56-feet!




8 - Call me Bob…
This is a Bobbit worm, and when they’re poking their little head out the sand, they look pretty cute. Don’t judge this guy by the part you see, as Bobbit worms have been known to grow up to 9.8 feet long! That’s a lot of worm hiding under the sand. The worm burrows itself into the sand leaving only it’s antenna sticking out. When something delicious comes by, this fast worm grabs it with its sharp teeth, sometimes slicing his prey in half while at it!


7 - Beware, he bites…
With a name like Viperfish, what would you expect? Luckily for us, they’re found in depths of up to 9,000-feet, and prefer the warmer, more tropical waters. The viperfish uses photophores to attract its prey, and it blinks on and off thereby attracting the prey. Once it’s close by, the viperfish devours it. The fish has long fangs and a hinged jaw, which allows the fish to swallow prey a lot bigger than itself. Some have been known to swallow fish that are 63% of their own body length.



6 - Fly away with me…
It seems that butterflies are just as beautiful in water, as they are out of water. This is a Clio Chaptali, a sea butterfly that is actually a type of snail. Their “wings” are the foot of the snail that has evolved over time to replicate wings. This sea butterfly flutters about, passively feeding on plankton and still has its shell for protection. Interesting side note – scientists have confirmed that the ocean’s acidic levels are changing, and they’re noticing that the shells of the sea butterflies are actually dissolving, which is a very scary to consider.


5 - Oh, Christmas Tree…
Even under the ocean there’s reason to celebrate Christmas, as they have their very own brightly coloured Christmas trees. The easy name for them is Christmas Tree Worms, and there are over 13,000 species of them! They’re bright and come in many different colours. You always see them in pairs, and they do quite a bit of work. Besides feeding and sifting through the food, these little guys also harness oxygen. What we see is just a small part of the worm, 2/3rds of the worm is actually hidden from us.


4 - You look like you’ve seen a ghost…
I think I’d rather see a ghost than a ghost shark! Ghost Shark’s are extremely rare, but they have been spotted off the coast of Hawaii, California and even Australia. They’re in depths of between 1,640 and 9,842-feet, and have a diet of worms, crabs and mollusks. These sharks are living fossils, and they’ve sometimes been called rabbit shark. Reason being, they have a jaw very similar to a rabbit, which they use to crush shells with. They can survive eating the things that no other fish could possibly eat, which is probably why they’re still around millions of years later.


3 - Here be monsters…
This fish looks like it’s emerged from the underworld… The Pacific Black Dragon is a deep-sea predator and is found in the Pacific Ocean. The females grow to around 2-feet, but the males, a mere 3-inches. Bad luck for the males, they are only around to do the dirty, and after that – Bye-bye Pacific Black Dragon.



2 - Not much of a looker…
It’s called the Black Swallower, which sounds more like a wrestling name than that of a fish, but when you hear why it’s called that, it will all make sense. This predator likes to dwell around 10,000 feet below the surface, and they’re not fussy, they like the waters of the Pacific, Atlantic and Indian Oceans. There’s slim pickings when you’re that far down, so these fish are able to swallow prey that’s much larger than itself. The stomach is very stretchy to accommodate the larger meal, however, there have been times when these creatures have swallowed something way too big, and their stomachs have literally exploded. Not a great way to go!


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