A decade-long census of sea life uncovers upward of 250,000 remarkable, nasty creatures, most of which I’m sure would be happy to feast upon your swollen corpse given the chance. I’m pleased to no end that we live on a planet with such a diverse array of critters AND that we are still actively exploring the ocean’s depths.
Still, I’m creeped out.
This critter, below, for example is a squidworm. The forward tentacles are there, I’m sure, to rape your mind.
Apparently, squidward squidworm was identified during a 2007 expedition to the Celebes Sea, near Borneo.
From the expedition’s chief scientist, Larry Madin:
When we got down nearer the bottom with the ROV, we encountered the most unusual and unfamiliar animal of all. When we first spotted it, people watching the video called out “squid,” “no, shrimp,” “maybe a fish,” “I think it’s a worm.” It did turn out to be a worm, but like nothing we had ever seen before. A worm almost 10 centimeters long, swimming with a row of paddles formed from stiff bristles, and with 10 long, writhing tentacles coming out of its head. No wonder we thought it could be a squid! We did end up calling it the “squidworm.” We think it may be an undescribed species, but none of us are experts on polychaete worms, so we’ll have to wait until a real specialist can tell us more about it.