Animals that live beneath deep waters are some really weird creatures (with most of them being terrifying) thanks to some still unknown evolutionary reasons. With such a sheer number of weird creatures and monsters roaming the oceans, we today have compiled a list of the most weird ocean creatures ever that could help us in determining the most bizarre ocean creature on Earth:
30. Marine Hatchetfish
It is named after its hatchet-like thin and silver appearance. It completely looks like an adaptation of some horror movie Predator thanks to its eyes which are prominently fixed overhead.
29. Goblin Shark
With flattened and long snout, claw-like teeth, and protruding jaws this is the only specie of the 125-million years old shark family that exists even today.
Also known as “living fossils” they were discovered in the 19th century and they follow a mysterious life cycle of survival deep below the blue ocean.
28. Anglerfish
It is known for its super creepy predation technique which involves an angler fish mimicking its prey and then devouring it completely once it gets closer.
To add more to the weirdness, when a male angler finds a female angler it quickly fuses into it – which is a unique mating habit and makes it the most bizarre creature known to man.
27. Whitemargin Stargazer
Found in the Indo-Pacific Ocean it is also known as pop-eyed fish. It is usually half-buried with just its head above the sand and waits to ambush small fishes that swim by.
It is named after its eyes which are atop its head and positioned before its electric organ that discharges 50 volts of energy.
26. Asian Sheepshead Wrasse
Native to the western Pacific Ocean, it resembles the famous animated character ‘Shrek’. It typically has unique jaws and thick and jutting lips along the overhanging chin and forehead.
This largest species of wrasses survives on crustaceans and shellfish.
25. Obese Dragonfish
This largest species of dragonfish has bioluminescence thanks to the photophores which mostly cover the area below its eyes and its 51 cm long body in the form of rows.
Habituated to the Pacific, Atlantic, and Indian Oceans, they are the rarely seen species that lives in extremely deep waters (5000 meters approximately).
24. Blobfish
The blobfish is often referred to as the ugliest creature on the planet. Having a jiggly appearance blobfish is more gelatinous than your mum’s pudding.
It does not have to invest any energy to prey, due to the lack of muscle tissue it just opens its mouth and allows gravity to do its trick.
23. Sea Cucumber
Inhabited across the world and in all depths, they have elongated cylindrical structures with anus on both sides. Due to its collagen levels, sea cucumber is incredibly flexible, lacks any sensory organs, and doesn’t have a true brain.
These ocean dwellers play an important role in their local ecosystem as they recycle detritus.
22. Fangtooth
Named after its gigantic fan-like teeth which even make the fish unable to close its jaws ever in its life.
Despite its dreadful looks, this 7-inch-long creature is benign to human beings and one of the deepest living sea creatures in the world that lives in around 5000 meters deep water.
21. Flamingo Tongue Snail
Native to the waters of the Caribbean and Atlantic Oceans, Flamingo Tongue Snails usually have a strikingly vibrant pattern which surprisingly is not a part of its shell but instead is caused by the living mantle tissues that cover most of its body. It feeds on different types of corals.
20. Barreleye
With its transparent head, Barreleye is surely one of the world’s strangest creatures found in the deep waters of the Pacific.
Commonly known as the “Spook Fish”, its eyes located in front of a transparent head allow it to look straight up as it rushes. Within the socket, its eyes can rotate in all directions which allows it to look in multiple directions.
19. Flower Hat Jelly
Imagine making yourself smaller or bigger with the severity of the hunger you have, this is actually what happens with the mysterious Flower Hat Jellyfish.
Habituated to the coastal waters of Argentina, Brazil, and Japan, they feed on the smaller fishes and shrink and grow according to the availability of the food supply.
18. Bobbit Worm
Native to tropical waters around the world, these 10-foot-long scary sea creatures have a long lifespan and ambush their prey with such furious speeds that it often slices them in half.
They also inject venom into their prey on the spot which makes them easier to consume. Despite their rainbowy and pretty look, they aren’t benign.
17. Chimaera
It uses its long snout as a metal detector to find its prey on the muddy seafloor. Also called the “Ghost Shark”, it has a cartilaginous body with large pelvic fins, pectorals, two dorsal fins, thick eyes, and a sharp spine.
Found at a depth of 2500 meters, they are native to various cold-water oceans.
16. Pelican Eel
Native to the tropical waters of the North Atlantic Ocean, the Pelican Eel has an enormous mouth that is even larger than its own body – making it one of the most notable sea creatures on our list.
Named after a pouch-like lower jaw its loosely-hinged mouth allows Pelican to swallow its prey that can be multiple times larger than itself.
15. Viperfish
With its large fan-like teeth, bulging eyes and photophores tipped long dorsal spine, it has a fierce nature and is found at a depth of 2800 meters in all the tropical waters around the world.
The large jaws and horrific-looking teeth help it to adapt to a low-energy environment and ensure that its prey wouldn’t escape its grip in the deep ocean where there is already a scarcity of food.
14. Flabby Whalefish
Called “Flabby” due to lack of ribs, these deep blue sea creatures have small eyes and are found around a crushing depth of 3500 meters.
Found in the coastal areas of New Zealand, this colorful creature can consume much larger prey compared to its own body thanks to its extendable stomach.
13. Red-Lipped Batfish
Thanks to the retractable appendage that has an inbuilt fishing rod snout, it captures its prey easily when it comes close to its unique lips.
The Red-Lipped Batfish is one of the 60 species of batfishes that compensates for the unusual look of its body by caking on the bright red lipstick. Having flattened a life on the seafloor, they look perfect while walking along the seafloor using their multi-purpose pectoral fins.
12. Coffinfish
Although it has a very weird name it perfectly suits it once you start to know it. Found in the deepest waters of the Southern Pacific Ocean, it resembles the colorful autumn gourd.
It hangs out at a depth of 1760 feet and uses its tiny fins to come up. Similar to the above-mentioned (#28) Anglerfish, it has a little lure on the top of its head.
11. Seapig
Seapig is a species of Sea Cucumber that is found at a depth of approximately 1000 meters in the Indian, Pacific, Atlantic, and Southern Antarctic oceans.
They are often distinguishable thanks to their short legs which are attached to the dorsal parts of their tiny bodies. They usually stay together in large groups that typically consist of 300 to 600 members.
10. Black Swallower
Also known as the “Great Swallower”, it is named after its ability to devour fishes that are 10 times larger than its size. They are found in subtropical and tropical waters worldwide.
9. Tonguefish
Recently found in the depths of the Western Pacific Ocean, they have flat bodies that resemble flounders but are a little bit longer than them. Both of their tiny eyes are located on the left side of their bodies.
Astonishingly they live in the extremely hostile environments found around hydrothermal vents that are usually rich in sulfur.
8. Carnivorous Sea Sponge
The candelabra-shaped coral is one of the most unique underwater creatures on our list. They have a foolproof way to prey as they capture small ocean creatures with the help of their hooks and spread their membranes all over them.
7. Dumbo Octopus
Usually habituated between 3000-7000 meters below the surface, Dumbo Octopus is similar to the regular octopus except for its ear-like flaps on both sides of its rather cute bell-shaped head.
They are never exposed to sunlight and they feed on the crustaceans, snails, and bivalves available at the seabed. So far this is the deepest-dwelling octopus species known to Science.
6. Megamouth Shark
Its name says it all as it is a shark species with a gigantic mouth. With overhanging jaws and bulbous heads, it’s native to the Indian, Atlantic, and Pacific Oceans.
The base of its throat consists of triangular marks and the tips of its fins have characteristic white spots. With a total length of roughly 4.5 meters, a Megamouth on average weighs a whopping 1653 pounds.
5. Pacific Black Dragon
As evident from its name, Pacific Black Dragon is found in the Pacific Ocean and a typical male Black Dragon is comparatively larger than its female counterpart.
Black Dragon females have a distinct long chin whisker and have fanlike teeth, however, males lack both the chin and the teeth. These tiny creatures don’t have a stomach and their entire life cycle revolves around mating.
4. Footballfish
Native to the tropical and subtropical waters of the Pacific, Indian, and Atlantic Oceans, they have an extremely interesting lifestyle.
A female football typically raises and cares for multiple male footballfishes whereas a male footballfish simply clings to its female partner and feeds directly from its body.
3. Harlequin Jawfish
Found in the Red Sea and the Indo-West Pacific Ocean they are approximately 3 cm long. They have bulging eyes, thick lips, and white patches covering their entire bodies.
Interestingly the male Jawfishes depict mouthbrooding behavior and keep their unhatched eggs in their mouths until they hatch.
2. Atlantic Giant Squid
Commonly known as Architeuthis dux, it is the world’s largest known invertebrate having a confirmed length of 43 feet (with some unconfirmed specimens measuring 66 feet).
There are several unconfirmed and disputed stories about giant squid attacks on humans that have circulated throughout history including giant squid attacks on stranded sailors from sunken ships during World War II.
1. Terrible Claw Lobster
When it was first founded in the Pacific Ocean in 2007, a new genus was created. Although it is a small animal however one of its claws can be equal to its entire body length.
Both of its claws are different in size and have sharp teeth which it uses effectively to grasp its prey.
Honorable Mentions
Our list of weird sea creatures cannot be completed without mentioning these weird underwater sea creatures:
- Sarcastic Fringehead
- Glass Squid
- Salp
- Axolotl
Which of the above is the most strange-looking sea creature that you have seen yet? Share with us your thoughts in the comments section below!
I will have nightmares thanks to Goblin Shark, great.