Photo: Photo Courtesy of the NOAA
NEW BEDFORD, Mass. (WBZ NewsRadio) — From roughback batfish to the goblin shark, and just in time for Halloween, the New Bedford Whaling Museum was on the hunt this month for the creepiest and most mysterious deep sea life.
The museum posted pictures of these ghastly creatures to social media to highlight the unique animals of the deep. Like the vampire squid, which is neither a squid nor an octopus, but a unique animal. Or, the completely white and ghost-shaped ghost octopus. Of course there's the blob fish, whose body looks like a melted human face and got it voted the ugliest animal in the world in 2013.
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The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration also posted a video series "Creep into the Deep," on their website.
But there’s an explanation for the way these animals appear. For example, NOAA’s Ocean Today program said that around 90% of creatures living greater than about 328 feet deep can emit light.
Dr. Edie Widder of the Ocean Research and Science Conservation Association said, "It [light] gets used for finding food, finding and attracting mates- a lot for defense and a way to communicate."
The spooky sea science hunt will end on Halloween.
WBZ's Tim Dunn (@ConsiderMeDunn) reports.
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