The Most Frightening Sea Creatures You Never Want to See

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Transcript

00:00:00A pod of dolphins is happily playing near the water's surface in the North Pacific Ocean

00:00:10on a sunny day.

00:00:11They're about as happy as can be, until the surface of the water begins to ripple.

00:00:19It becomes more pronounced, like a possible tsunami or an underwater volcano preparing

00:00:24to blast.

00:00:25Their instincts tell them to hightail it out of there, but they don't know which way is

00:00:29the safest path out.

00:00:31Abruptly, a tremendous roaring sound fills the air.

00:00:36The water explodes outwards as a giant whale bursts into the air.

00:00:43Hello, mama!

00:00:44Wait, that's no whale.

00:00:46It's an ichthyosaur, a giant sea dragon type monster from the Triassic period.

00:00:52It's a massive 55 feet long and weighs 45 tons.

00:00:56It doesn't look too dissimilar to a dolphin, but this sea monster isn't any cousin.

00:01:02The dolphins scatter back beneath the water.

00:01:05Fortunately for them, the ichthyosaur is not interested in having them for lunch.

00:01:09It's merely playing as well.

00:01:11This particular species is far more used to eating marine mollusks, smaller fish, and

00:01:16squid.

00:01:17But there's nothing in sight, so it disappears back below the surface, swimming majestically

00:01:22with its huge fins and long, eel-like tail.

00:01:26It had once roamed the land, but like other prehistoric land reptiles, including modern

00:01:31day whales and dolphins, it returned to the sea and evolved over millions of years.

00:01:36Its limbs have been transformed into flippers.

00:01:39Some species had digits on their flippers, or phalanges.

00:01:43They could almost pass for human hands.

00:01:45Well, hello there!

00:01:47Some possessed a dorsal fin.

00:01:49Their heads were pointed, and their jaws contained conical teeth to catch smaller prey.

00:01:54They had large eyes, probably used for seeing in deep waters.

00:01:58Their tail fin made for a powerful stroke.

00:02:02Like some other sea creatures, they could breathe air and were warm-blooded.

00:02:06They were sleek and as beautiful as some of today's ocean creatures.

00:02:10Unexpectedly, an underwater time vortex opens in front of it, sucking in everything in its

00:02:16path like an underwater black hole.

00:02:19The ichthyosaur disappears inside, flailing about, unable to control its journey back

00:02:24into the deep past.

00:02:26Soon, it's spat out again, into its own natural timeline of the Triassic period, during the

00:02:31early dinosaur age, approximately 247 million years ago.

00:02:36It swims with others of its kind.

00:02:39They lived in herds or hunting groups.

00:02:41While varying forms evolved worldwide, such as the smaller myxosaurus, let's stay with

00:02:46this one because it will eventually find its way into modern human hands.

00:02:51In evolutionary terms, the ichthyosaurs lasted for a very long time, millions of years.

00:02:57There are many complex factors involved with how they became extinct, but in simplistic

00:03:02terms, environmental changes brought out declines in smaller food groups and more brutal predatory

00:03:08groups.

00:03:09Some fish had evolved as well and became too fast for the ichthyosaur.

00:03:14So we will leave our poor friend here, unable to find enough food and losing out to the

00:03:19tougher competition.

00:03:20It's hungry, tired, and weak.

00:03:23It simply drifts away with the currents, eventually finding itself resting on the ocean floor.

00:03:32Millions of years passed.

00:03:34During the Triassic and Jurassic era, sea levels gradually ebb away, exposing vast regions

00:03:40of the desert.

00:03:41The area we're focusing on became Nevada in the western part of the United States.

00:03:47During the Cretaceous period, a volcanic island chain formed.

00:03:50Geological upheaval continued, bringing the ocean floor up into modern mountains.

00:03:56Embedded in the rock, well, you can guess, not only ancient invertebrates, but more modern

00:04:01creatures such as mammoths and giant sloths.

00:04:04What an incredible array of wildlife.

00:04:08But we're not here for them today.

00:04:10Let's find out what happened to our friend.

00:04:13Jump forward in time again to 1998.

00:04:16The place, the Augusta Mountains of northwestern Nevada, or more specifically, a place called

00:04:21Fossil Hill.

00:04:23Protruding out of the rock were a few vertebrae.

00:04:27Researchers could tell whatever creature it belonged to.

00:04:29It was clearly enormous.

00:04:31It was so embedded in the rock and complex that the excavation took many years.

00:04:36In September of 2011, the excavators found more of the beast, the well-preserved skull,

00:04:42forelimbs, and chest region.

00:04:45It wasn't until 2015 that the now obviously giant ichthyosaur could be fully extracted.

00:04:51The surviving fossils were a skull the size of a fully grown man, a shoulder, and a flipper-like

00:04:57appendage.

00:04:58Even then, it took a helicopter to move it.

00:05:03The team named the new species Simbospondylus youngorum.

00:05:07Simbospondylus is a Greek word meaning spine.

00:05:10Let's call this one ichthyosaur spiny from now on because it should have a name by now.

00:05:16And let's face it, it's a lot easier to pronounce.

00:05:19Spiny was airlifted to the Natural History Museum in Los Angeles and further shipped

00:05:23to the University of Bonn in Germany.

00:05:26The study was undertaken by vertebrate paleontologist Martin Sander and his colleagues while collaborating

00:05:31with the University of Mainz.

00:05:33It was a unique and truly electrifying find as the marine reptile was the largest animal

00:05:38ever discovered from this time.

00:05:41As far as we know, stated Martin Sandler, it was even the first giant creature ever

00:05:45to inhabit the Earth.

00:05:47You can think of spiny as the underwater T-Rex of his time.

00:05:51He's also quite remarkable as his type lived only three to five million years after a mass

00:05:56extinction event known as the Great Dying.

00:06:02It happened roughly 252 million years ago.

00:06:06It took out approximately 90% of the world's life forms.

00:06:10What caused it?

00:06:11The short version is elevated temperatures and increased acidification in the oceans.

00:06:16Once one part of the food chain extinguishes, it causes a domino effect, as you can imagine.

00:06:22Soon, there's little left to eat and only the sturdiest can survive.

00:06:27The atmosphere also had high levels of carbon dioxide.

00:06:31Theories argue that giant volcanic eruptions caused this in Siberia, known as the Siberian

00:06:36Traps.

00:06:38It was the largest volcanic eruption in the past 500 million years.

00:06:42The eruptions lasted a staggering 2 million years.

00:06:46Large volumes of basaltic lava covered a large area of Siberia.

00:06:50Even today, the site is covered by about 3 million square miles of basaltic rock.

00:06:56Other theories say that an asteroid caused the Great Dying rather than the volcanoes.

00:07:01In any regard, the impact was the same, and 81% of Earth's marine species and 70% of the

00:07:07land-based vertebrae species were no more.

00:07:13There have been numerous mass extinction events, but Spiny's size and existence are extraordinary

00:07:19compared to the Great Dying.

00:07:20It usually took 9 million years for species to recover and grow to this size, but he came

00:07:26into being in less than half that time.

00:07:29Using sophisticated computer models, the researchers examined the likely food web running

00:07:33through the area now known as Fossil Hill.

00:07:36They recreated the ancient environment through the available data, finding that marine food

00:07:41webs must have supported giant creatures like the ichthyosaurs.

00:07:45The theory is that our Spiny fed on a diverse and rich diet of marine mollusks, known as

00:07:51ammonoids, that flourished from 1 to 3 million years after the Great Dying.

00:07:55The now extinct ammonites filled the ecological void following the mass extinction and had

00:08:01excellent living conditions without much prey to interfere with them.

00:08:05Ichthyosaurs also evolved rapidly because they were the first more giant creatures to

00:08:09populate the world's oceans.

00:08:11The mollusks they fed off were also exposed to less competition.

00:08:16Spiny had a massive food supply.

00:08:18He chowed down like there was no tomorrow.

00:08:20Unlike whales that become large due to eating foods like plankton, Spiny and his fellow

00:08:25species grew big on the ammonites, and it took them a much shorter time.

00:08:30That's a good message for you kids to eat healthily!

00:08:32The exciting thing for us today is that these results show that marine ecosystems can build

00:08:37up and respond well to such dramatic changes as climate, atmosphere, or water conditions.

00:08:43They may have had different pathways, but some ichthyosaurs and whales have similarities.

00:08:49They both have large sizes and a lack of prominent teeth.

00:08:53Worm whales dive deep to hunt giant squid.

00:08:56Spiny hunted similarly.

00:08:58They use a type of filter feeding to extract the food from the water.

00:09:02Our friend likely ate fish and possibly squid, and ever smaller ichthyosaurs.

00:09:08Ouch!

00:09:09Other ichthyosaur forms had lots of teeth with a skull more like a giant lizard.

00:09:13They had razor sharp teeth.

00:09:16Ichthyosaurs swam the ancient oceans for nearly the whole of the dinosaur age.

00:09:20Underwater fossils have been found in many other countries such as England, Norway, Japan,

00:09:25Germany, Colombia, China, and Australia.

00:09:28They were the underwater planet rulers of their day.

00:09:31As the sun sets 250 million years ago, we might imagine Spiny having a better outcome

00:09:37than he ultimately did and popping his head out of the water to watch the orange hues

00:09:41of the pristine sky.

00:09:43He pauses for a moment before, once again, dipping underwater to join his friends, swimming

00:09:48happily away with the herd, looking for food and adventure in the deep blues of the Triassic

00:09:54Ocean.

00:10:01The Stonefish

00:10:04Stonefish aren't going to win any beauty contests, unless the pageant is for best rock look-alike.

00:10:10Their tiny unreflective eyes and rough skin blend in perfectly with their environment.

00:10:15A large head, an even bigger mouth, and a home full of, yeah, it's rocks.

00:10:21And just because you're on the beach doesn't mean you're safe.

00:10:25Stonefish can survive for 24 hours out of the water.

00:10:29Stepping on one or even handling one won't be that fun.

00:10:33Their dorsal fin spines have extremely strong venom.

00:10:37It shoots out when they get stepped on and can lead to paralysis or even heart failure.

00:10:43You'll need help fast.

00:10:44No wonder they're one of the most dangerous creatures in the water, or anywhere.

00:10:49Be careful when scrambling around rocky areas.

00:10:52They love to play hide-and-seek.

00:10:55The Deep Sea Dragonfish

00:10:59If there were a prize for the most hideous fish in the ocean, the Deep Sea Dragonfish

00:11:03would win.

00:11:05With slimy, scaleless skin, massive teeth, and a face only a mother could love, this

00:11:11bad boy of the sea is nothing to mess with.

00:11:14It likes to swim between 700 feet and 6,000 feet below the surface of the ocean, where

00:11:20the waters are the darkest and coldest.

00:11:23Along with some other creatures on this list, the Deep Sea Dragonfish relies on its bioluminescent

00:11:28body parts to catch prey.

00:11:30It also uses its hanging appendage, which boasts a little red light on the end, coming

00:11:36out from its lower jaw.

00:11:38Many fish mistake this little light for prey, luring them right into the jaws of the Deep

00:11:43Sea Dragonfish.

00:11:45Very clever, Dragonfish, very clever indeed.

00:11:49The Fangtooth

00:11:52The Mariana Trench is an underwater trench with a depth of 35,000 feet, nearly 7 miles

00:11:59below the ocean's surface.

00:12:01Let that sink in.

00:12:02While scientists know the Mariana Trench exists, it's one of the least explored places on Earth.

00:12:09It's also the deepest area of Earth's oceans.

00:12:12And although many creatures down there probably haven't even been seen by humans yet, scientists

00:12:17have had the creepy pleasure of getting to know the Fangtooth.

00:12:22The Fangtooth fish shamelessly lives up to its name.

00:12:25Just look at that thing.

00:12:27The Fangtooth is carnivorous and feeds on just about anything it can find that gets

00:12:32caught in its sharp-toothed mouth.

00:12:34These fish rely on their contact chemoreception to find prey.

00:12:39In other words, they can sense chemical residue that comes off of other living organisms in

00:12:44the deep sea.

00:12:45This is because they don't have any light-producing cells on their bodies, unlike many other deep

00:12:50sea fish.

00:12:52On top of all that, it's pretty dark down there, so whatever crosses their path, they chomp

00:12:58on.

00:12:59While these guys look pretty scary, they're not a threat to humans.

00:13:03They only grow about 7 inches long.

00:13:06Even so, I wouldn't want to run into one of these things during a relaxing swim in

00:13:10the ocean.

00:13:12The Dunkleosteus Strangely enough, this prehistoric fish, known

00:13:18as the T-Rex of the seas, had no teeth.

00:13:22Those were replaced with bony plates that allowed it to have the strongest bite among

00:13:27other monsters of its size.

00:13:30The Goblin Shark If you thought the movies about sharks were

00:13:35scary, this next deep sea creature will make you swear off going for dips in the ocean

00:13:40forever.

00:13:41However, it lives 3,000 feet underwater, so you'll never likely see it face to face.

00:13:48The Goblin Shark looks like a cross between a shark and a creature from your worst nightmare.

00:13:54These sharks boast a protruding, sword-like snout with a jaw that juts out to match.

00:14:00Unlike other sharks that have more of a gray hue, this creepy thing looks not so pretty

00:14:05and pink.

00:14:06Aside from their scary demeanor, what do scientists really know about the Goblin Shark?

00:14:11Well, not much, except that they can grow up to 18 feet in length.

00:14:17Looks like there's still a lot to learn about these guys, if you dare to.

00:14:22By the way, did you know that sharks don't sleep?

00:14:26Many species have to keep water moving over their gills to get oxygen, so they can't

00:14:31fall into a deep sleep like we do.

00:14:33That's why they stay half-awake during rest.

00:14:37Typically, sharks don't even close their eyes.

00:14:41The Cookie Cutter Shark This shark is a living horror, with lower

00:14:47teeth being big and sharp, while the upper ones are much smaller.

00:14:51When its teeth fall off, the shark eats them to maintain calcium levels.

00:14:56Pretty smart solution for a shark.

00:15:00The Frilled Shark Studying the Frilled Shark is like looking

00:15:05through a portal back to prehistoric times.

00:15:08That's because scientists think that these eel-like sharks haven't changed much since

00:15:13their oldest ancestors roamed the deep sea waters, so they're sometimes referred to as

00:15:18living fossils.

00:15:20These sharks' mouths are filled with a terrifying 25 rows of backward-facing sharp teeth, 300

00:15:26in total.

00:15:27They're designed to grasp prey and hold them tight so they can't get away, according

00:15:33to early studies of the shark conducted in 1884 and published in the Bulletin of the

00:15:38Essex Institute.

00:15:40Luckily for swimmers, the Frilled Sharks live between 390 feet and 4,200 feet below the

00:15:47ocean's surface, so they'll probably never run into them.

00:15:51Probably.

00:15:52This is probably the worst nightmare of any dentist.

00:15:56The Northern Stargazer Take a look at this cutie.

00:16:01The Northern Stargazer is definitely not something you'd wish to see on the ocean floor.

00:16:07This horrid creature hides its body under the sand, leaving its face above to wait for

00:16:12prey.

00:16:16The Tasseled Wobbegong Here's another carpet shark on our list.

00:16:22It lies low on the bottom of the sea and patiently waits for its prey to come by.

00:16:28The Australian Ghost Shark The Australian Ghost Shark isn't really even

00:16:34a shark, but a very bony fish.

00:16:37It's also a living fossil.

00:16:39It hasn't changed within the last 400 million years.

00:16:44Believe it or not, sharks and humans have a common ancestor that lived around 440 million

00:16:50years ago.

00:16:52Even though we both evolved in our own way, there are still some signs of that connection.

00:16:57For example, the genome of an elephant shark is very similar to humans.

00:17:05The Leopleurodon This list of terrifying creatures would be

00:17:10incomplete without mentioning the terrifying and prehistoric Leopleurodon.

00:17:16This carnivorous marine reptile existed during the Colobian stage of the Middle Jurassic

00:17:21era and ruled the waters at 9 feet in length.

00:17:26Scientists believe Leopleurodon thrived in this deep-sea trench because of its ability

00:17:31to swim long distances and its four paddle-like limbs.

00:17:35While they probably weren't able to propel themselves toward prey like other animals

00:17:39of the area, they did manage to accelerate and attack very ruthlessly and efficiently.

00:17:46Additionally, they relied on their long snouts to smell prey, which leads scientists to believe

00:17:52they didn't rely on sight for hunting.

00:17:55This means they could have thrived in the dark Mariana Trench.

00:18:00Around 150 million years ago, Leopleurodon became extinct due to competition for prey

00:18:06against other thriving marine reptiles.

00:18:09And I think I speak for all of us when I say, thank goodness for that.

00:18:15Considering that scientists have only explored 5% of the ocean floor and found some of the

00:18:20scariest sea creatures imaginable, one can only dream of what other animals reside in

00:18:25the deep-sea waters.

00:18:27Perhaps it's best to keep them in your imagination, am I right?

00:18:33The Megamouth Shark This shark is a filter feeder and it's friendly

00:18:38to humans, although its huge mouth can look quite threatening.

00:18:43Like basking sharks, it swims with its mouth constantly wide open, as if it were on Twitter.

00:18:51The Gulper Eel This deep-sea eel has an easily distended

00:18:56belly that allows it to swallow prey twice its size in a single monstrous bite.

00:19:01They have very unusual jaw shapes and can reach about 2-3 feet in length.

00:19:09Do you see that large log near the ocean floor?

00:19:12Maybe it's part of an old ship.

00:19:14Treasure!

00:19:15Gold!

00:19:16Diamonds!

00:19:17I'm rich!

00:19:18As you get closer, you notice something.

00:19:20It's swimming!

00:19:22It's not a shark or a dolphin.

00:19:24It's a saltwater crocodile!

00:19:27Now don't panic.

00:19:28If you bump into one of these reptiles in the sea, it's unlikely it'll think of you

00:19:32as food.

00:19:34Crocodiles have a special valve in their throat that stops them from drowning underwater.

00:19:39But that doesn't mean they can't bite!

00:19:42Usually, they're heading to a nearby island, and the quickest way there is to body surf.

00:19:48They can't really take the ferry, you know.

00:19:51Watching one from a distance should be okay.

00:19:54Just don't swim to shore right away.

00:19:56They love to ambush their lunch in shallow water.

00:19:59If there's one time I'd want to see a great white shark, it's when I'm diving with crocodiles.

00:20:05They'll gladly take a crocodile-sized nibble, given the right motivation.

00:20:12Think you know what lurks in the depths of the ocean?

00:20:15While nearly 95% of our oceans haven't been explored yet, it's hard not to let your imagination

00:20:21run wild.

00:20:23Thanks to brave explorers, deep-sea cameras, and awesome archaeologists, we do know about

00:20:29some pretty incredible sea creatures living in our waters today, and millions of years

00:20:34ago.

00:20:35From the 9-foot spider crab to the 60-foot prehistoric megalodon, these sea dwellers

00:20:40come in all shapes and sizes.

00:20:43But let's focus on sea creatures famous for their huge size.

00:20:48Can you guess which living species of whale is the largest?

00:20:52Well, it's not the orca, but that's a good guess.

00:20:55The orca is a toothed whale that can grow to anywhere from 23 feet to 32 feet, which

00:21:01is slightly smaller than a school bus.

00:21:04How about the narwhal?

00:21:05Nope, they're not the biggest either.

00:21:08These unicorns of the sea live mainly in Arctic waters and only grow 13 feet to 20 feet in

00:21:14length, and that's including their 9-foot tusk.

00:21:18Tired of guessing?

00:21:19Okay, I give in.

00:21:21The largest whale that still exists today is the blue whale.

00:21:25At a jaw-dropping 82 feet to 105 feet, the blue whale is not only the biggest whale we

00:21:31know of, but is currently the largest animal to have ever lived on Earth.

00:21:36Seriously.

00:21:38These animals are bigger than a T-Rex and even the prehistoric megalodon.

00:21:43If you were to put a blue whale next to a school bus, it would look like it could swallow

00:21:47it.

00:21:48Think about that.

00:21:50According to National Geographic, a blue whale's tongue can weigh the same as an elephant,

00:21:55and their hearts can weigh as much as a car.

00:21:58That doesn't even sound possible.

00:22:01It's no wonder these giants need to eat about 4 tons of krill every day.

00:22:07While there aren't too many animals living today that can compete with the blue whale's

00:22:10epic proportions, there is an entirely different species that is a good contender, and it's

00:22:16not quite what you would expect.

00:22:18It's a jellyfish.

00:22:20No, I'm not talking about the little jellyfish that wash up on the shore and ruin a perfectly

00:22:24good day at the beach.

00:22:26I'm referring to the lion's mane jellyfish, the biggest jellyfish around.

00:22:32This invertebrate can grow up to 120 feet long.

00:22:36They also come in different gorgeous colors, like red, purple, or even shades of orange.

00:22:43As if their length wasn't impressive, the lion's mane jellyfish boast a whopping 8 sets

00:22:49of 70 to 150 tentacles.

00:22:52That means they can have up to 1,200 in total.

00:22:56And here's the giant oceanic manta ray, the largest type of ray in the world.

00:23:02Their wingspan can be longer than a bus.

00:23:05These guys can reach 30 feet in length.

00:23:08They also have the biggest brain compared to body size among all fish.

00:23:13Unlike their stingray cousins, mantas don't have venomous tails.

00:23:19And while the lion's mane jellyfish and the blue whale are yet to be beaten for the longest

00:23:23sea creature, there is one marine creature that can grow even larger in length.

00:23:28The Portuguese Physalia Physalis, tentacles and all, can reach a length of 165 feet long,

00:23:36and that's according to mentalfloss.com.

00:23:39While this thing may look a lot like a jellyfish, it's actually known as a siphonophore, and

00:23:44there are hundreds and sometimes thousands of them that are genetically identical.

00:23:50Their long tentacles help the organism catch prey, and its sting is fatal to most animals,

00:23:56even humans in some cases.

00:23:58What's even creepier is that if one of the tentacles comes off the organism for whatever

00:24:03reason, it can float around the water for days before decomposing.

00:24:08Even if it's detached, this tentacle can still sting you, but don't go running out of the

00:24:13ocean just yet.

00:24:15Your chances of being hurt by a Portuguese Physalia Physalis sting are pretty slim.

00:24:21However, if you do get stung, the side effects aren't pretty, with welts, stomach cramps,

00:24:28an elevated heart rate, and an upset stomach.

00:24:31While you don't want to go anywhere near these long creatures, they sure are pretty to look

00:24:35at.

00:24:36Check out all those colors!

00:24:39The Shastasaurus is the biggest marine reptile that has ever existed.

00:24:44These predators lived during the Late Triassic Period, about 210 million years ago.

00:24:50These amazing giants could reach lengths of up to 69 feet and weighed more than 75 tons.

00:24:57This made the Shastasaurus as heavy as a blue whale.

00:25:01And if you could stand this creature up vertically, it'd be as tall as a seven-story building.

00:25:07Despite appearances, the Shastasaurus was actually pretty slim for its size.

00:25:12Its ribcage was only six feet across.

00:25:15You'd think that this big guy was chowing down on other dinosaurs, but that's not the

00:25:19case at all.

00:25:21This reptile survived on a diet that consisted of small fish and cephalopods, like octopuses

00:25:27and squids.

00:25:29The Albertonectes is a bright representative of the Pleiosaur family, meaning that this

00:25:34marine reptile had a small head on an incredibly long neck and large flipper-like limbs that

00:25:40helped it move through the water.

00:25:43These creatures occupied the seas around North America 76 to 70 million years ago.

00:25:49The length of this sea monster could reach 38 feet, with its neck taking up 23 feet of

00:25:54that length.

00:25:57This neck was a true record-breaker.

00:25:59It had a whopping 76 bones in it.

00:26:02No other animal known to humankind has had so many vertebrae in its neck.

00:26:08Scientists aren't sure why they needed such a lengthy neck.

00:26:12They might have used it to collect shellfish off the seabed.

00:26:15Or perhaps it helped them capture their main prey, fish and squids.

00:26:19This aquatic reptile also had gastroliths in its stomachs.

00:26:23Some of them were as big as 5.5 inches in diameter.

00:26:28The Tylosaurus belonged to the Mosasaur family.

00:26:32It dominated the shallow seas of North America about 85 to 80 million years ago.

00:26:38This was an enormous predator, with the biggest representatives reaching 45 feet in length.

00:26:44It had a narrow hydrodynamic body with a blunt, powerful head that the animal used to ram

00:26:50and stun its prey.

00:26:52Its body was equipped with agile flippers and a long tail decorated with a maneuverable

00:26:56fin.

00:26:58The Tylosaurus was a carnivore, and its diet included not only fish, turtles, and small

00:27:04sharks, but also other mosasaurs, pleosaurs, and flightless birds.

00:27:10Meet Ophthalmosaurus.

00:27:12This prehistoric reptile thrived during the late Jurassic period and lived in oceans all

00:27:17over the world.

00:27:19Ophthalmosaurus weighed somewhere around 6,000 pounds and grew to approximately 16 feet long,

00:27:26according to NewDinosaurs.com.

00:27:28That's about the same length as the beluga whale that exists today.

00:27:32It's too bad these guys went extinct before we had a chance to see them ourselves, as

00:27:37their cartoonish wide eyes and dolphin-like features are pretty darn cute.

00:27:41Of course, the Ophthalmosaurus evolved over time to become ophthalmologists, or eye doctors

00:27:47that we know today.

00:27:49No, that's just a lie.

00:27:51Just testing you.

00:27:53The Mosasaurus is a truly gigantic predator that dominated the seas all over the world

00:27:59about 66 million years ago.

00:28:02According to fossil evidence, some specimens could be more than 50 feet in length.

00:28:06This fact makes the Mosasaurus the biggest marine carnivore of its time.

00:28:11One of the most terrifying things about this creature was its crocodile-like head, decorated

00:28:16with literally hundreds of razor-sharp teeth neatly organized in two rows on both jaws.

00:28:22The thing is that it was pretty challenging for the Mosasaurus to grab its prey in the

00:28:26water.

00:28:27That's why it had all these teeth, plus something special, pterygoid teeth anchored to the bones

00:28:34on the roof of its mouth.

00:28:36This made hunting and holding onto its prey much easier.

00:28:40The Styxosaurus belonged to the Pleiosaur family and lived during the Late Cretaceous

00:28:45period, around 85 to 70 million years ago.

00:28:49Upon first glance at this dinosaur, you might mistake it for a sea snake, and it'd be an

00:28:54honest mistake.

00:28:55Styxosaurus were about 35 feet in length, but over 16 feet of that consisted just of

00:29:01their long snake-like neck.

00:29:03They had a comparatively small body and weighed approximately 4 tons.

00:29:08Their mouths were full of razor-sharp cone-shaped teeth that they used to catch fish.

00:29:13They didn't need to chew their prey, thanks to the 200 small stones called gastroliths

00:29:18in their bellies that probably aided in digestion.

00:29:22At the same time, some scientists believe that the Styxosaurus used these stones to

00:29:27sink to the ocean bottom in search of particular types of fish.

00:29:31Looks kinda like Nessie to me.

00:29:33So, you're swimming two miles down at the bottom of the ocean.

00:29:40Don't ask me how, just play along.

00:29:42It's cold, and the pressure is intense.

00:29:45No fish in sight.

00:29:47Then you notice a green shiny thing.

00:29:50It's a cookie-cutter shark.

00:29:52Its neck glows in the dark to attract fish and other delicious treats.

00:29:57The shark doesn't look like much.

00:29:59It's small, about the size of a cat.

00:30:02It has brown skin and large green eyes.

00:30:05But looks can be deceiving.

00:30:07Every night, this creature rises to the surface and goes after great white sharks, whales,

00:30:12even swordfish.

00:30:14If you look closely, you'll see a round mouth with a bunch of sharp teeth in it.

00:30:19They don't just bite, they work kind of like a saw.

00:30:22This one's called a cookie-cutter shark because when it sees something delicious, it takes

00:30:27a cookie-shaped bite out of it.

00:30:29These sharks have even been known to disable submarines.

00:30:33Wonder what flavor they are?

00:30:35Our next shark is about the length of a car.

00:30:38Only about 100 of these sharks have ever been seen, but if you met one, you'd never forget

00:30:43it.

00:30:44It has a big mouth, a huge mouth, a mega mouth, like me!

00:30:48It's the mega-mouthed shark.

00:30:50You could easily fit in it if you curled yourself up.

00:30:53They're not dangerous, though.

00:30:55Not to humans.

00:30:56They feed by swimming around with their mouths open, filtering out plankton and other underwater

00:31:01goodies.

00:31:02The shark has special organs in its mouth that glow, attracting little crustaceans.

00:31:08It swims deep in the ocean in total darkness.

00:31:11Probably has a great smile, though.

00:31:14Thresher sharks also have a huge body part – the tail.

00:31:17It's almost half the length of the shark itself, and it looks like a helicopter blade.

00:31:22It's one of the few animals that hunts using its tail.

00:31:26The shark snakes up on a school of fish and starts to shake its money-maker.

00:31:31This freaks out some of the fish, which is exactly the plan.

00:31:35In a pinch, it can also use its tail to defend itself.

00:31:39The best thing about this shark – it doesn't attack people.

00:31:43The angel shark There are quite a few types of angel shark

00:31:47out there, but they're more shark than angel.

00:31:49They're flat like stingrays, and their skin is covered with patterns that help them blend

00:31:54in with the seafloor.

00:31:56Because of this disguise, divers sometimes accidentally touch them, which isn't the

00:32:01best idea.

00:32:02They're fast and have powerful jaws.

00:32:05Still, they prefer the taste of small fish to you.

00:32:09The horn shark has two ridges that look like horns right above its eyes.

00:32:13It's definitely the grandpa of the shark world.

00:32:17Not aggressive, swims pretty slowly, and is up late almost every night.

00:32:21It's two favorite meals – sea urchins and crustaceans.

00:32:25It moves its fin on the seafloor almost as if it had paws.

00:32:30Don't underestimate this guy – it has one of the strongest bites of any shark.

00:32:35It needs those strong teeth to crush the shells of its late-night meals.

00:32:40And if something tries to attack it, watch out!

00:32:43Horn sharks have sharp spikes on their fins.

00:32:46The award for the ugliest shark goes to the goblin shark, and it's not even close.

00:32:52From the outside, it already looks kinda weird, and is about the size of a pink underwater

00:32:57motorbike.

00:32:58It has a long tail and a seriously long nose.

00:33:02It lives way down in the depths of the ocean and loves to eat squid.

00:33:06It's not as fast as its relatives, but it's way more sneaky.

00:33:11It has a secret squid-catching technique, which is totally wild.

00:33:15The shark swims behind the squid – it's catching up, getting closer and closer.

00:33:20But the squid isn't slowing down, no way!

00:33:23It looks like the poor goblin shark won't have any lunch today.

00:33:27Then it opens its mouth.

00:33:29Its jaw is attached to folds of skin that mean it can literally throw its jaw out of

00:33:35its mouth.

00:33:36And it's a shark, so those teeth are sharp.

00:33:39That extra reach helps it grab its lunch, and when the meal's over, it pops its jaw

00:33:44back in its mouth.

00:33:46These sharks have been seen many times off the coast of Japan.

00:33:49They're actually named after the goblins in Japanese myths and fairy tales.

00:33:55There's only one thing out there cooler than a ninja shark – it's the ninja lantern

00:34:00shark.

00:34:01Imagine there's a tube you can slide down that takes you to the bottom of the ocean.

00:34:05It's too dark, you can't see anything.

00:34:08Suddenly, a glowing dot, moving around in the distance.

00:34:12It's coming closer, shooting towards you.

00:34:15It's a blue glowing head.

00:34:17Worse, it looks like this head doesn't have a body attached to it.

00:34:22The ninja lantern shark has black skin, so it's almost invisible in the dark.

00:34:27It's only the size of a human arm, but its small, sharp teeth are no joke.

00:34:33No one really knows why this shark glows – maybe to attract tasty fish?

00:34:38Another theory out there is that it uses this light to communicate with its friends.

00:34:43It has friends?

00:34:44The hammerhead shark.

00:34:46These ferocious sharks can weigh up to half a ton.

00:34:49They live in tropical waters all over the world, and they're one of the most recognizable

00:34:54sharks out there.

00:34:55Their eyes really are located on the sides of their hammerhead.

00:35:00This means they can see in almost all directions.

00:35:03They even have special neck muscles to lift their head up and down just to see that little

00:35:09bit better.

00:35:10Their favorite food?

00:35:11Stingrays.

00:35:12You know, those flat things that swim along the seafloor, camouflaged to look like sand

00:35:17and bits of rock?

00:35:19Stingrays get by by blending in with their surroundings.

00:35:23Danger mostly just swims by.

00:35:25But the hammerhead's eyes see everything.

00:35:30Great white sharks, hammerheads, and other large sharks live for about 25 years.

00:35:36But one shark can live much, much longer.

00:35:39The Greenland shark can live anywhere from 300 to 500 years.

00:35:44It lives mostly in the North Atlantic and Arctic oceans.

00:35:48It loves to swim deep down where it's dark, so it uses its nose to sniff out food.

00:35:54Since it spends so much time down there, it's figured out how to withstand the strong pressure.

00:36:00It's one of the oldest living, largest, and slowest fish on Earth.

00:36:04Just imagine, you're on an Arctic cruise, and you see one of these sharks, moving slowly

00:36:09through the freezing cold water.

00:36:11It might be 400 years older than you!

00:36:15Most sharks are omnivorous.

00:36:17They can go after dolphins, other sharks, crabs, sea urchins, smaller or even larger

00:36:22fish, hot dogs… kidding about the hot dogs.

00:36:26But the bonnethead shark is a bit different.

00:36:29It eats algae for about half its meals.

00:36:32It's actually related to the hammerhead shark, but its head looks more like a shovel.

00:36:37Can you dig it?

00:36:39If you see this guy swimming around, you might think it's a sea snake or a huge water worm.

00:36:45Frilled sharks like to swim way down at the bottom of the ocean, like a lot of sharks.

00:36:51When they're chasing something delicious, they move kind of like a snake.

00:36:55And just like a snake, they like to gulp down their lunch all in one piece.

00:37:00But that doesn't mean they don't have teeth.

00:37:02They have about 200 nice and sharp ones.

00:37:06The saw shark has a long, flat, and seriously spiky nose.

00:37:11Those teeth on its nose never stop growing.

00:37:13Each tooth is equipped with electric receptors to help the saw shark feel around for nearby

00:37:19fish, like a ship's radar.

00:37:21When dinner's nearby, the shark swims up and strikes with its nose, waving it around

00:37:27like a knight showing off his skills.

00:37:29Meanwhile, you won't have time to blink if this guy floats past.

00:37:34Did you see it?

00:37:35How about now?

00:37:36Meet the fastest shark in the world, the shortfin mako shark.

00:37:41It can swim up to 35 mph.

00:37:43That doesn't seem that quick on land, but underwater, that's fast.

00:37:48Slower than a cheetah, but faster than most dogs.

00:37:51It's warm-blooded, which is super rare for a shark.

00:37:55That helps it swim to cold and distant places where an ordinary shark simply wouldn't survive.

00:38:01The swordfish goes much faster.

00:38:03It can swim up to 60 mph.

00:38:06It's not a shark, but it's still an amazing creature.

00:38:09In a race, the swordfish will usually come out on top.

00:38:13But it's not just fast, it's ingeniously fast.

00:38:17It has a gland next to its nose that pumps out a special oil.

00:38:21This oil spreads through its nose and comes out through tiny holes.

00:38:26This special oil is waterproof, which lets the swordfish glide through the water at high

00:38:31speed.

00:38:35The heikegani crab lives off the coast of Japan and has a distinct pattern on its shell

00:38:41that looks like a human face.

00:38:43More specifically, the face of an angry samurai, hence the nickname the samurai crab.

00:38:51The scarlet-striped cleaning shrimp is a natural hitchhiker.

00:38:55It stands on the seafloor and waves its long antennae for fish and sea animals to go down

00:39:01and pick it up.

00:39:02Even it pays for the ride by cleaning the host from bacteria and plankton.

00:39:07Sea salps are often confused with jellyfish, although they're closer to Portuguese man-of-war.

00:39:13They're very quick to mature, growing from newborns to adults in less than 48 hours.

00:39:21The Galapagos Islands are legendary.

00:39:24They've got giant tortoises, blue-footed boobies, sally lightfoot crabs, and red-lipped batfish.

00:39:31But if you've ever swum around there, you might have seen something really unexpected

00:39:35in the water.

00:39:36Iguanas!

00:39:37Everywhere!

00:39:38These large marine reptiles eat the algae that grow on underwater rocks.

00:39:43They're strict vegetarians.

00:39:44I bet the fish are happy about that.

00:39:48A long flat tail designed for swimming helps them move around, and sharp claws keep them

00:39:53on the rocks for their daily sunbathing sessions.

00:39:56But watch them closely.

00:39:57They sneeze a lot.

00:39:59If they haven't got a cold or anything, they're sneezing out salt.

00:40:03A special gland keeps the salt out of their nose, and they've got to get rid of it somehow.

00:40:09Sounds painful.

00:40:10What's cool is that they don't mind us in the water with them.

00:40:14Because the islands have been so isolated, the creatures here aren't afraid of humans.

00:40:20Fish can fly, too.

00:40:22Thanks to their wing-like fins, flying fish can soar a distance of about 600 feet, almost

00:40:28as long as two football fields.

00:40:30They need flight to escape from predators.

00:40:35The skeleton shrimp could be the stuff of nightmares if it wasn't so tiny.

00:40:40As it is, it looks like a stick insect, but almost completely transparent.

00:40:46This creature looks more like a fish from a horror movie than from Earth's oceans.

00:40:51The sea devil anglerfish resides at a whopping depth of 3,200 feet, and has no shortage of

00:40:58weird features.

00:40:59Razor-sharp teeth, a misshapen body, and an unsettling stare.

00:41:05But perhaps the creepiest thing about the sea devil anglerfish is the way it catches

00:41:09its prey.

00:41:11It has a fishing rod-type appendage on its forehead that has a glowing light attached

00:41:15to the end to attract animals.

00:41:18Once these animals come close enough to the light, bam, they're captured by the sea devil's

00:41:23massive jaws.

00:41:25These guys are even capable of eating prey larger than they are, so their eyes aren't

00:41:30bigger than their stomachs.

00:41:33Starfish can cover their prey with their stomachs and eat it outside its body.

00:41:39Then they simply bring their stomachs back inside.

00:41:42Well, that's handy.

00:41:44Their relatives, sea cucumbers, can do the same party trick, except that they leave part

00:41:50of their guts behind to scare their attacker.

00:41:53That's okay, the missing parts quickly grow back.

00:41:57Cockatoo squids, or glass squids, are a large genus whose members can reach quite impressive

00:42:03size.

00:42:04Yet, one thing they have in common is that their bodies are transparent, and the internal

00:42:09organs glow in the dark.

00:42:12Despite the hairy octopus looking like it's forgotten to comb its hair in the morning,

00:42:17it's actually its skin that's sticking in every direction.

00:42:21Other sea creatures have a harder time realizing where the octopus itself is this way, I guess.

00:42:27The hairy squat lobster lives in reefs, hiding from its enemies in crevices.

00:42:33If you're lucky to see it, you'll instantly notice the drastic difference between its

00:42:37whitish hairs and vibrant pink and violet claws.

00:42:43If you step on a sea urchin, you're going to know right away.

00:42:46Look at those spikes!

00:42:48While they're not aggressive, they've got a great defense going against any creature

00:42:52that wants to eat them.

00:42:54Venomous spikes and a poisonous bite.

00:42:57Pick your poison, literally.

00:42:59They live in all the oceans of the world, so avoiding them is out of the question.

00:43:04They mostly hang out in shallow water, hiding in rock pools and reefs, so unmindful people

00:43:11step on them a lot.

00:43:12The long venomous spikes of the urchin look like needles, and feel like them too.

00:43:18They can go in quite deep, plus they release a strong toxin.

00:43:22So what's the cure?

00:43:24Remove the spikes quickly and wash with salt water.

00:43:29Sea turtles are constantly crying.

00:43:31They're not sad or anything.

00:43:33The weeping is only because they excrete excess salts from their body through their tears.

00:43:40Venomous jellyfish tentacles grow up to 10 feet long, and each tentacle has 5,000 stinging

00:43:46cells.

00:43:47Not bad for a creature that's mostly just water.

00:43:50Their venom is strong enough to paralyze anything they want to eat.

00:43:55If you happen to get stung, it's going to hurt a lot.

00:43:59Its toxins contain proteins that affect the heart, skin cells, and even our nervous system.

00:44:05No wonder it's considered one of the most dangerous creatures on the planet.

00:44:09I wouldn't recommend using sunscreen, soda, coffee, or other older methods.

00:44:15They don't work.

00:44:16Your best bet is some good old-fashioned seawater.

00:44:20Looks like jellyfish are the rulers of the ocean, not sharks.

00:44:25The margin sea lizard isn't an actual lizard.

00:44:28It's a kind of sea slug that dwells close to the water's surface.

00:44:32It swims upside down and somersaults to get food.

00:44:36But let's admit, it looks very cute.

00:44:41When some foreign object gets into an oyster's shell, be it a grain of sand, a parasite,

00:44:46or garbage, the thing irritates the mollusk's inner walls.

00:44:50Since the animal can't spit the item out, it envelops it in thin layers that separate

00:44:56from the body.

00:44:57These pearlescent layers accumulate until they form a round pearl.

00:45:02In the past, people believed that pearls were the tears of mermaids.

00:45:07Now we know they're just some decorated debris.

00:45:11Dolphins have highly developed communication.

00:45:13They call each other by name.

00:45:15Each dolphin responds to a specific sound.

00:45:19Mostly they say, stop calling me Flipper.

00:45:23The orca is the largest of dolphin species, and they actually have different cultures.

00:45:29Two orcas from different social groups won't even understand each other's language.

00:45:34They're the only animal known to do this.

00:45:37I wonder if they developed any Google Translate for dolphins.

00:45:41The banded shrimp, or banded boxing shrimp, was really aptly named.

00:45:46It's got bands of color all over its body and always stands in a boxer-like, ready-to-strike

00:45:52pose.

00:45:54The brown-lined paper bubble is another sea slug, and it definitely looks like one.

00:46:00It's got a special ability, though.

00:46:03It can quickly burrow holes in the seafloor, hiding from enemies inside them.

00:46:09The snakefish, as the name implies, looks a lot like a snake, but it has a very distinctive

00:46:14feature.

00:46:16It can walk on its fins.

00:46:18Thanks to this peculiarity, it easily crawls from one waterbed to another, choosing habitats

00:46:24more to its liking.

00:46:26On the way, a snakefish can get hungry for sure, so it often munches on small birds and

00:46:32rodents.

00:46:33It can grow quite big, though, and hunt even larger animals.

00:46:37How much weirder can it get than to walk through the woods and suddenly see a huge and toothy

00:46:41fish stalking some rabbit?

00:46:45The alligator snapping turtle catches its prey by going fishing.

00:46:50Its tongue looks like a worm, and the turtle waits with its mouth wide open at the bottom

00:46:55of a stream, lake, or pond until some unsuspecting fish takes the bait.

00:47:01Then snap!

00:47:02The jaws come together faster than the blink of an eye, and dinner is served.

00:47:08The mossy jellyfish is normally invisible in the dark abyss where it dwells, but when

00:47:13exposed to light, it will reflect it and shine beautifully.

00:47:18The black swallower might be small, but make no mistake, it could easily gulp down your

00:47:23favorite puppy.

00:47:25It can open its mouth extremely wide, allowing it to swallow prey twice its size.

00:47:32The African tigerfish will eat whatever it finds, and given its own size and that of

00:47:37its monstrous teeth, you can imagine it finds a lot of food.

00:47:42It mostly feeds on other fish, but when nutrition is scarce, it can jump out of the water and

00:47:48catch both insects and small birds right in the middle of the flight.

00:47:53It's not so big as to eat a human, of course, but the name should warn you that it can easily

00:47:58take a bite out of your arm or leg.

00:48:02Your brain controls your arms and legs, but with an octopus, each arm is actually kind

00:48:08of independent with its own special brain held together by a bigger central brain, kind

00:48:14of like the conductor of an orchestra.

00:48:16The central brain sends higher-level signals to each arm, saying things like, move to the

00:48:22left, there's a crab behind the corner, or touch this silly human's foot, let's mess

00:48:27with him a little bit.

00:48:29No matter how smart their arms and legs might be, an octopus still needs to look after them

00:48:34all the time.

00:48:38What's the scariest predator under the ocean?

00:48:40The crocodile?

00:48:41I don't think so.

00:48:43Loch Ness Monster?

00:48:44It never existed.

00:48:47How about the Kronosaurus?

00:48:48Well, it is extinct, but you might be onto something.

00:48:53Let's take a look at what it'd be like if these creatures were still around today.

00:48:58First things first, what on earth was it?

00:49:00The Kronosaurus was a marine carnivore that lived in the cool, high-latitude Aromanga

00:49:05Sea.

00:49:06It covered vast areas of inland Australia between 90 and 120 million years ago, during

00:49:12the early Cretaceous period.

00:49:14Near-complete fossils of the creature were also found near Colombia, which is a country

00:49:19that has a noted connection to prehistoric reptiles and turtles.

00:49:23This fact makes it extremely possible that the monster I'm about to describe existed

00:49:28worldwide.

00:49:29You might have heard of a saurus and thought, oh, it's a dinosaur.

00:49:34But these were actually reptiles.

00:49:36They were the largest member of the Plioceroidea family, referred to as pliosaurs.

00:49:42Fossil evidence suggests they weighed over 20,000 pounds and were roughly 30 feet in

00:49:46length.

00:49:48Just to put that in perspective, the longest crocodile ever measured was a saltwater crocodile

00:49:53by the name of Lolong from the Philippines.

00:49:56It was 20 feet in length and weighed just under 2,500 pounds.

00:50:02And that's still 10 feet shorter and incredibly lighter than the average Cronosaurus, making

00:50:08the crocodile seem like nothing more than a glorified goldfish in comparison.

00:50:13Despite its terrifying length, the most physically daunting feature of the Cronosaurus was its

00:50:18head.

00:50:19Its skull was about 8 feet long, which was actually proportionally large given the size

00:50:24of its body length.

00:50:26Anything that was unfortunate enough to end up inside the Cronosaurus's mouth may have

00:50:31been given false hope.

00:50:33After all, the teeth of the beast weren't actually that sharp.

00:50:37On second thought, I take that back.

00:50:39I wouldn't feel confident around a toothless snake, let alone being inside the mouth of

00:50:44this monster.

00:50:46But it's true that the Cronosaurus's teeth weren't sharp, especially when compared to

00:50:51other carnivorous reptiles, such as crocodiles and alligators.

00:50:55The teeth of this prehistoric sea creature were instead conical.

00:50:59This means that they were cone-like in shape.

00:51:02Unfortunately, this lack of sharpness didn't make them less dangerous.

00:51:07The teeth were enormous and could be up to 12 inches long from the crown tips to the

00:51:11bottom of the roots.

00:51:14This obviously meant that the Cronosaurus had an extremely powerful bite.

00:51:18It was estimated to be up to 30,000 newtons, which is almost twice as powerful as the bite

00:51:23of a large saltwater crocodile.

00:51:27Because of the bluntness of their teeth, they weren't suited for twisting their prey

00:51:30once in their grasp.

00:51:32But the size and shape of the teeth made them perfect for simple, open-and-shut biting.

00:51:38They would have had no problem crushing hard objects such as the toughest of shells any

00:51:42sea turtle could offer.

00:51:45Just like crocodiles, the Cronosaurus is believed to have had a short neck.

00:51:50This may have been an adaptation to allow the beast to successfully catch small, evasive

00:51:54animals.

00:51:56Their body, in general, was fusiform and streamlined.

00:52:00This means it was narrowed at both ends and had very little resistance to the flow of

00:52:04water.

00:52:05The Cronosaurus was also equipped with four paddle-like limbs.

00:52:09The hind limbs were larger than the front ones.

00:52:12They could span approximately 7 feet in diameter.

00:52:15All in all, this set the Cronosaurus up to effortlessly propel itself through the waters

00:52:20and be an ultimate predator.

00:52:24Predator X, if you will, that's the name that was given to the fossil of a creature discovered

00:52:29near Svalbard, a Norwegian island group, in 2009.

00:52:34The fossil was identified as a 50-foot-long, 100,000-pound monster with a bite force of

00:52:3933,000 pounds per square inch.

00:52:43This might be the highest bite force of any known animal.

00:52:47Although Predator X is yet to be classified as any specific type of animal, it was definitely

00:52:52a Pleiosaur like the Cronosaurus.

00:52:55And even if it wasn't Predator X, the Cronosaurus was still most definitely a ferocious titan

00:53:01when it roamed Earth's oceans.

00:53:04The Cronosaurus actually got its name from the Greek mythological figure of Cronus, the

00:53:09father of Zeus.

00:53:10Cronus was viewed as a titan from a generation of super-powerful beings.

00:53:16So what was it that the Cronosaurus, this terrifying monster, actually feasted on to

00:53:22satisfy its appetite?

00:53:23This creature was known to eat sea turtles, squid, and other larger marine reptiles of

00:53:28that time, such as Elasmosaurids and Icthyosaurs.

00:53:33This suggests that if crocodiles existed in the realms of the Cronosaurus, they too might

00:53:38have turned into lunch for the beast.

00:53:41There's evidence from the fossil remains of the Cronosaurus that suggests that they also

00:53:45feasted on sharks, which I know is a disappointment to those of you who view that beast as the

00:53:51king of the ocean.

00:53:52Not when the Cronosaurus was around, my friend.

00:53:57In any case, grounding all kinds of food into small pieces to help digest them would have

00:54:02been difficult without small teeth.

00:54:05This explains the presence of rounded stones found in many of the remains of these sea

00:54:09creatures.

00:54:11Researchers believe these stones may have been swallowed to control buoyancy or to help

00:54:15process food.

00:54:17It's also entirely possible they were accidentally swallowed while feeding on other animals from

00:54:22the seafloor.

00:54:24As if the Cronosaurus even needed to be a meanie with its already existing power and

00:54:28size, there's also evidence to suggest that it indeed might have been.

00:54:33It turns out that after using all its impressive attributes to catch its dinner, the Cronosaurus

00:54:39first liked to play with its food, like a cat does with a mouse.

00:54:43I guess since the hunt was so easy for them, they needed to get their fun from somewhere

00:54:48else.

00:54:49Well, I think now you should have a good idea about these creatures, so let's ask ourselves

00:54:55what it would be like if they were still around today.

00:54:58And by the way, why aren't they?

00:55:01Well, the Cronosaurus was completely finished off by the same KT meteor that took out the

00:55:06dinosaurs 66 million years ago.

00:55:09But even before this catastrophic event, they were coming under increased pressure from

00:55:13an even bigger and more vicious family of carnivorous marine reptiles known as mosasaurs.

00:55:20You can't always be a top dog, I guess.

00:55:22Or rather, top marine reptile.

00:55:26But what if this never happened, and they were still roaming Earth?

00:55:29Well, this might be obvious, but can you imagine what kind of impact that would have on sea

00:55:35tourism?

00:55:36Based on the impact that famous movies about sharks and killer whales had, what do you

00:55:41think the presence of a Cronosaurus in the ocean would do to beaches?

00:55:45The very creature that would eat sharks and whales for breakfast?

00:55:49Beaches would certainly become a great place to go for a quiet walk, because nobody else

00:55:54would even be there.

00:55:56And what about such activities as boating, surfing, and scuba diving?

00:56:00You think anyone would dare try them, knowing that this 30-foot beast could be lurking beneath

00:56:06Let's give humans some credit and assume most of them wouldn't.

00:56:10This would cripple the global sea tourism industry, which is responsible for earning

00:56:14roughly $143 billion every year.

00:56:18Just to make sure this shocking point hits home, the most expensive yacht to ever roam

00:56:23the ocean was called the History Supreme.

00:56:26Its master bedroom was believed to have a statue made of T-Rex's bone and a wall made

00:56:31of meteorite rocks, as well as a 24-karat gold panoramic wall aquarium.

00:56:37Anyway, this yacht was worth nearly $5 billion, meaning you could buy 38 of them with the

00:56:43money lost in potential damages to sea tourism caused by the Cronosaurus.

00:56:49I'm sure that the yacht's owner was happy the beast never made an appearance in their

00:56:52luxurious aquarium.

00:56:55So luxurious, in fact, that some people believed the History Supreme, reportedly owned by some

00:57:00business genius from Malaysia, never even existed.

00:57:04Rumor has it that it was simply an elaborate hoax fabricated by the supposed designer.

00:57:09Anyway, I don't think the trouble would just stop there.

00:57:13People could actually be in serious danger, regardless of being near the ocean or not.

00:57:17No, I'm not about to tell you that this thing would grow legs, adapt to living on land,

00:57:22and start picking us off one by one.

00:57:24At least, I hope not.

00:57:27I'm just going to point out the damage that the Cronosaurus would inflict through its

00:57:30devastating impact on sea trade.

00:57:33In America, ocean transit accounts for 76% of national trade.

00:57:38On top of this, more than 100 vital pharmaceutical products originate in the sea.

00:57:43I'll also state the obvious and point out that the ocean is a huge food source for us

00:57:48humans.

00:57:49The presence of the Cronosaurus could have a great impact on our relationship with the

00:57:53ocean – something we usually take for granted.

00:57:57Some sharks have an eerie ability to spit out their stomach and then pull it back into

00:58:01place.

00:58:02Well, that would be handy.

00:58:03Most sharks eat huge amounts of food, but the problem is they can't digest everything

00:58:08they've gulped down.

00:58:09So, they need a way to get rid of such stuff as sea turtle shells and beaks, bird feathers

00:58:13and bones, lobster claws, and whatnot.

00:58:16And then, these amazing creatures willingly barf up their whole stomach, along with all

00:58:21the contents.

00:58:22After the shark is done, it pulls its main digestive organ back in, and the entire process

00:58:28usually takes no more than a second.

00:58:30Some shark species, like Great Whites or Mako, have a special eye-warming system.

00:58:35Their retina heats up their eyes and brain.

00:58:38This not only helps them detect movement better, but also improves resolution.

00:58:43As for the Mako shark, this species often travels vertically across different temperatures.

00:58:48Unlike most people with only one movable jaw, sharks can freely move both their lower

00:58:53and upper jaws.

00:58:55This allows them to get a better grip on their meal, and chew it up faster and more thoroughly.

00:59:00That's comforting.

00:59:02Sharks give birth to a large number of little ones at once.

00:59:05It depends on the species, of course, but let's say the blue shark is famous for producing

00:59:10more than 130 pups at a time.

00:59:13Great White sharks have a more powerful bite than most jungle cats.

00:59:17A 20-foot-long underwater hunter can produce a force of more than 4,000 pounds per square

00:59:23inch.

00:59:24And that's a bite four times stronger than that of a lion or tiger.

00:59:27People, with their measly 150-200 psi bites, aren't in the running whatsoever.

00:59:34Swell sharks defend themselves by swallowing huge amounts of water.

00:59:38Then the shark's body becomes twice its normal size.

00:59:42And this scares potential danger away.

00:59:45Sharks can grow more than 50,000 teeth during their lifetime.

00:59:48But not all of their teeth are the same.

00:59:51The strongest and most massive ones are at the front, and those closer to the back are

00:59:55smaller and not so powerful.

00:59:57But if the front teeth are damaged, these weaker ones can replace them.

01:00:01It's possible because sharks' teeth aren't as deeply rooted as humans' and can move.

01:00:07Shark skin has the same feel as sandpaper.

01:00:10It's made of teeny, teeth-like scales.

01:00:12They point towards the animal's tail.

01:00:15This helps to reduce the friction that occurs when sharks move through the water.

01:00:19Whale sharks have extremely thick skin.

01:00:21In some places on their body, it can be 6 inches thick.

01:00:25It's one of the toughest in the animal world.

01:00:28Scientists have to make loads of effort if they want to get this creature's blood sample.

01:00:32Sharks have an incredible sense of smell.

01:00:35But besides that, they use one more sense to detect other animals.

01:00:39There are special pores around their head, near the nostrils, and under the snout.

01:00:44Those are special organs, something like second sight.

01:00:48Every creature generates a tiny electrical field.

01:00:51Thanks to the pores, sharks can spot these electrical fields and figure out where other

01:00:55animals are.

01:00:57Sharks are incredibly sharp-eared.

01:00:59They can hear their potential meal from 3,000 feet away.

01:01:03They can also catch low-frequency sounds, like the ones produced by a fish's contracting

01:01:08muscle tissue.

01:01:10Sharks have been around for more than 400 million years.

01:01:13It means they've lived through 4 out of 5 mass extinctions.

01:01:17This makes them way older than Mount Everest, humans, dinosaurs, and even trees.

01:01:22These creatures go back to the period when coral reefs were just beginning to form.

01:01:27Some shark species can jump out of the water, like the great white shark or the basking

01:01:32shark.

01:01:33They're known to leap for more than 8 feet up into the air.

01:01:36Thanks to this maneuver, they can catch such animals as seals or seabirds.

01:01:40But unless you're in South Africa, you aren't likely to see sharks jumping out of the water.

01:01:46Shark skeletons are made of muscle and cartilage, which are lighter and twice less dense than

01:01:50bones.

01:01:51This makes sharks more flexible, which allows them to make sharp turns when they're chasing

01:01:56other animals.

01:01:58Hammerhead sharks have a weirdly shaped head for a reason.

01:02:01Thanks to it, these creatures have incredible 360-degree vision.

01:02:05Their eyes are tilted a bit forward, and it allows them to have an overlapping field

01:02:10of view.

01:02:12The goblin shark's terrifying jaws are attached to elastic ligaments.

01:02:16They can unfold from the animal's snout for up to 3 inches.

01:02:20It allows the animal to catapult its mouth forward to catch other marine creatures.

01:02:25Sharks don't sleep as you do.

01:02:27Some species have to keep swimming all the time.

01:02:29Otherwise, water will stop flowing through their gills, and they won't be able to breathe.

01:02:34Others do rest, but they don't enter an unconscious state.

01:02:38They just go into special rest periods.

01:02:40These creatures don't have eyelids.

01:02:42That's why their eyes remain always open, and their pupils monitor their surroundings.

01:02:47They also keep their mouth open so that the water can pass through their gills.

01:02:51Sharks can travel remarkably long distances without needing any rest.

01:02:56All thanks to their bizarre sleeping pattern.

01:02:59For example, great whites can swim distances of more than 2,000 miles without stopping

01:03:04to eat or rest.

01:03:06How come these creatures don't starve?

01:03:08They draw on the fat stored in their livers.

01:03:11By the way, this organ can compose up to a third of the animal's body weight.

01:03:16Contrary to popular belief, sharks do not and cannot swim in reverse.

01:03:21Their tails propel them forward, and their pectoral fins help them to keep their balance

01:03:25and turn.

01:03:26It means that, anatomically, these animals can't move in any direction other than forward.

01:03:32Sharks have no vocal cords.

01:03:34They can't produce sounds to communicate with one another or express their emotions.

01:03:38That's why they have to use body movements like twisting their bodies or flipping over.

01:03:44Sharks live in all of the world's oceans, but several species also inhabit freshwater

01:03:48rivers and lakes.

01:03:50For instance, bull sharks have been found in tropical rivers.

01:03:53They're also known to be able to swim between fresh and salt water.

01:03:58The smallest shark out there is the dwarf lantern shark.

01:04:02This unique creature doesn't grow longer than 8 inches.

01:04:05But the shark makes up for its tiny size in other ways.

01:04:09For example, some of its organs emit light.

01:04:12And since the creature lives in the shallow waters, this helps to camouflage it in the

01:04:16rays of sunlight.

01:04:18Blue sharks eat a lot, often more than they need.

01:04:22Some of this food can remain undigested for weeks till it's needed for energy.

01:04:27Sharks have something that looks similar to a tongue.

01:04:30But this organ is called the bashial.

01:04:32It's the front section of the cartilage that goes from the shark's chest to its

01:04:36mouth.

01:04:37It doesn't move and is pretty much useless.

01:04:39The so-called tongue doesn't take part in the process of feeding.

01:04:43It isn't covered in taste buds.

01:04:45Its only real use might be that it supports some of the bones connecting the shark's

01:04:50gills.

01:04:51There are hundreds of shark species in the world.

01:04:53More precisely, around 500.

01:04:56Some of them are pretty bizarre.

01:04:57Just look at the goblin, basking, or cookie-cutter shark.

01:05:01All these sharks vary in size, from several inches to dozens of feet long.

01:05:06They also live in absolutely different environments.

01:05:09Tiger sharks eat whatever they can get their jaws around.

01:05:13Some of the weirdest things they've munched on are video cameras, bags of money, license

01:05:17plates from almost any U.S. state, dog leashes, you name it.

01:05:23Each whale shark has a unique pattern on its skin.

01:05:26These spots and stripes can be used to identify individual sharks, just like fingerprints

01:05:31are used to identify people.

01:05:33The blunt-nosed six-gill shark can dive to a depth as great as 5 Empire State Buildings.

01:05:39Baby sharks are called pups.

01:05:42When they get born or hatch, they are already fully nourished.

01:05:46And if they choose to swim away from their mama shark, they don't need to hunt for

01:05:50food for at least several weeks.

01:05:52Uh-oh, did somebody say baby shark?

01:05:57In the past 30 years, scientists have made an incredible discovery of a new creature

01:06:02living deep beneath the surface of the ocean.

01:06:05And the name of the creature is the harp sponge.

01:06:07Now, if you're wondering why it took so long to come across this animal, then I might

01:06:12have the answer.

01:06:13These creatures typically hang out at a depth of roughly 11,100 feet beneath the ocean's

01:06:19waves.

01:06:20The harp sponge species was first discovered off the coast of California thanks to a robot

01:06:25that was sturdy enough to explore those crazy depths the ocean has to offer.

01:06:29This is no doubt an area of the planet where even the most benign-looking creatures can

01:06:34be potentially dangerous.

01:06:36But even scientists were surprised to find that this creature was more than just a sponge.

01:06:42Now, this might seem obvious, but the harp sponge got its name because its basic structure

01:06:47– referred to as a vein – is the same shape as a harp.

01:06:51Each vein is made up of a horizontal branch supporting several parallel vertical branches.

01:06:57But don't let the harp sponge's fanciful and amusing appearance or its non-intimidating

01:07:02name fool you.

01:07:03Yeah, the harp sponge is very much a deep-sea hunter.

01:07:07It has a unique ability to capture and envelop small animals using its rhizoids – short,

01:07:13thin fibers.

01:07:15With their help, the harp sponge clings on to the soft, muddy bottom and catches tiny

01:07:19creatures that get swept into its branches by deep-sea currents.

01:07:24Other sponge creatures often feed by pulling bacteria and bits of organic matter from the

01:07:29seawater and filtering them through their bodies.

01:07:32But not our harp sponge.

01:07:34Instead, it snatches its future meal with minuscule barbed hooks that cover each of

01:07:40the harp sponge's branches.

01:07:42Harp sponges prefer tiny crustaceans, like crabs, crayfish, shrimps, and prawns.

01:07:48Once the harp sponge has one of them in its clutches, it envelops the animal in a thin

01:07:53membrane before slowly beginning to digest it.

01:07:57So pal, what's eating you?

01:07:59Oh, harpo?

01:08:00Too bad.

01:08:02Researchers believe that harp sponges use this method of feeding because there aren't

01:08:06enough nutrients that deep down.

01:08:08This makes traditional filter feeding less effective.

01:08:11Research has shown that the creature is still in the process of evolving.

01:08:15Early harp sponges researchers found only had two veins, but later, scientists discovered

01:08:21other harp sponges that had six veins.

01:08:24The harp sponge might've evolved this elaborate candle-holder-like structure to increase its

01:08:29surface area.

01:08:30In general, harp sponges typically grow up to a length of one foot, but researchers have

01:08:35seen a creature that was two feet in length.

01:08:38The harp sponge is not only very unusual, but also beautiful to look at.

01:08:43See those tiny white balls on top of the branches?

01:08:47Now why don't we look at some other creatures that live below the photic zone of Earth's

01:08:51oceans?

01:08:52The photic zone means the area beneath the ocean's surface that still receives some

01:08:56sunlight.

01:08:57Thanks to this, there are loads of different creatures and organisms living there.

01:09:02Any animal living beyond this layer qualifies as a deep-sea creature.

01:09:07The tomopterous worm is a segmented worm you can find in the twilight zone of the ocean.

01:09:12This is the area that lies between 650 and 3,300 feet beneath the surface.

01:09:18These creatures are often no more than one inch long, but the largest of them can grow

01:09:22up to one foot.

01:09:24While swimming around and feeding, these worms do what researchers describe as an amazing

01:09:29smooth dance.

01:09:30That's because the creatures can swim extremely quickly and maneuver at tight angles with

01:09:36ease.

01:09:37Now I know most people hear the word worm and think of the common earthworm.

01:09:41So it's quite interesting to know there's a deep-sea worm out there that never leaves

01:09:46the water during its entire life.

01:09:48Similarly, most of us try to avoid jellyfish that either rest on the sand or sit on top

01:09:54of the ocean waves.

01:09:55This isn't the case with a cressoda jelly.

01:09:58That's a deep-sea creature too.

01:10:00This beautiful jellyfish is mostly ruby red, bright orange, or electric purple.

01:10:05That's what helped researchers realize they had found a new species of jellyfish.

01:10:10The creature grows to a maximum size of one inch across.

01:10:14It has tentacles that stretch out in every direction.

01:10:17Now if you come close to this jellyfish, it'll pull all these tentacles in toward its body

01:10:22before rapidly swimming away to avoid danger.

01:10:25Yes, you are dangerous.

01:10:27The cressoda jelly is extremely rare.

01:10:30You won't see it very often.

01:10:32You might need to borrow that deep-sea diving robot I mentioned earlier.

01:10:36While worms and jellyfish might seem quite harmless, this isn't the case with the Pacific

01:10:41viperfish.

01:10:43This creature is equipped with a noticeably big mouth, like me.

01:10:47And the needle-like teeth inside are key to its hunting strategy.

01:10:51Pacific viperfish live at around 5,000 feet below the ocean surface.

01:10:56But they're among those numerous marine animals that migrate each night from the ocean

01:11:01depths toward shallower waters to dine.

01:11:03What's on the menu for dinner tonight?

01:11:07Lots of small fish and shrimp.

01:11:09The creature can grow up to 12 inches in length.

01:11:12Its two front fangs, which stick up from the fish's bottom jaw past its own eyes, are

01:11:17especially dramatic.

01:11:19When the fish unhinges its jaw, its mouth can open wide enough to engulf smaller animals.

01:11:24And the teeth form a cage to prevent an escape.

01:11:28Have you ever seen an underwater creature that looks like a strawberry?

01:11:32Trust me, it does exist.

01:11:34Just look at these dots on the strawberry squid.

01:11:37The creature has a big eye and a smaller one.

01:11:40You might think this unconventional pairing would be awkward and uncomfortable, but it's

01:11:45actually the opposite.

01:11:47The big left eye looks upward.

01:11:49It spots shadows cast by other animals in the dimly lit waters above.

01:11:53The eye's tupular shape helps it collect as much light as possible.

01:11:58On the other side of the squid's head, you can see its right eye.

01:12:02It's small and looks downward.

01:12:03This eye searches for flashes of bioluminescence produced by animals lurking in the darker

01:12:09waters below.

01:12:11Bioluminescence means the production and emission of light by living organisms.

01:12:15By the way, the squid has a nickname.

01:12:18And no, it's not Squiggy, although that's a great one.

01:12:22It's known as the cockeyed squid.

01:12:24This is simply due to the remarkable difference in size between its two eyes.

01:12:29I think I like Squiggy better.

01:12:31And so it goes.

01:12:32Since light doesn't reach the deep sea, the strawberry squid's body actually looks black.

01:12:38This helps the creature hide from enemies, such as sharks and dolphins.

01:12:42In general, the strawberry squid grows to a length of 5 inches.

01:12:46It typically lives around 3,000 feet below the surface but floats to shallower waters

01:12:51at night.

01:12:53The feather star is a marine creature without a backbone but with feather-like arms that

01:12:58radiate from the center of its body.

01:13:01These creatures first appeared around 200 million years ago.

01:13:04Related to sea stars, they look like a flower, but if you approach them, they'll quickly

01:13:09swim away.

01:13:11But not all feather stars can swim.

01:13:13Many species can only crawl along the bottom of the seafloor.

01:13:17Like some of the other deep-sea creatures we've looked at, the feather star can adapt

01:13:21to its surroundings.

01:13:22It has a creepy ability to shed its arms, the same way some lizards can shed their tails.

01:13:28This also helps them escape from their enemies.

01:13:31Feather stars live all across the globe, from the equator to the poles, from the shallow

01:13:36waters on top of reefs to the deep, deep sea.

01:13:40Given that we're dealing with mysterious creatures, the name of this one is quite fitting.

01:13:45The swift vampire squid should be the official symbol of life in the deep sea.

01:13:51The animal has a dark red body, huge blue eyes, and a cloak-like web that stretches

01:13:56between its eight arms.

01:13:58This, along with its name, may suggest that the creature is some form of a terrifying

01:14:03hunter.

01:14:04In reality, though, the vampire squid is a soft-bodied, timid creature, about the size,

01:14:10shape, and color of a football.

01:14:12It grows to roughly 12 inches in length and lives 3,000 feet below the waves.

01:14:17There's almost no oxygen there, but also relatively few predators.

01:14:22Oof, I think I'll need to decompress from this one.

01:14:27Most of the ocean is still shrouded in mystery, whether we're talking about dark corners or

01:14:31creatures that are hiding in the depths.

01:14:34But sometimes, it gives us a peek into scary things it hides in its cold, dark depths.

01:14:40Like, when you hear on the news that there are some deep sea creatures washed ashore

01:14:44after a powerful storm once again, some just look weird, while others are real monsters

01:14:51that live at depths of more than 3,300 feet.

01:14:55The coldest and deepest parts of the ocean have created one specific phenomenon called

01:15:00gigantism.

01:15:01So, sea spiders, squids, worms, and many other animals, mostly invertebrates or creatures

01:15:08without backbones, they're all way bigger and scarier than the versions we see in the

01:15:13more shallow areas.

01:15:14In the Pacific depths, you can see a sea sponge as large as a minivan.

01:15:20Or what about the colossal squid that lives in sub-Antarctic waters and is nearly 14 times

01:15:26longer than the arrow squid, a type that mostly lives in New Zealand?

01:15:32Researchers found many of these underwater monsters in the abyssal zone of the ocean.

01:15:36Back in 2021, the researchers showed images of the giant phantom jelly.

01:15:41It was at a depth of 3,200 feet.

01:15:44Its tentacles were 33 feet long.

01:15:46Wow, I wouldn't like to face that one on the beach.

01:15:51It probably eats only small fish and plankton, but it can swim to depths of more than 21,900

01:15:57feet.

01:15:59And down there, this giant jelly doesn't have enough food.

01:16:03How does it survive then?

01:16:05Scientists haven't figured it out yet.

01:16:08And there are even more questions related to the giant squid, the biggest one ever found.

01:16:14This monster is 43 feet long with a weight of nearly a ton.

01:16:18Imagine if those tentacles would grab your car or something like that.

01:16:23They would smash it like it was a toy.

01:16:26There's no light in the abyssal zone.

01:16:28Sunrays just can't penetrate that deep, so there's no algae or underwater plants there.

01:16:35All animals mostly eat snow.

01:16:38Marine snow is not like the regular one you build a snowman with.

01:16:42It consists of any small flakes or remains that fall from the surface of the ocean.

01:16:47Maybe even some leftovers that animals up there couldn't eat.

01:16:51So it's not much.

01:16:53But apparently, it's enough for very large creatures that hide deep down there, like

01:16:58giant squids.

01:17:00Squids that generally live at such depths don't bother going after their prey.

01:17:05They just wait until the poor animal swims right up to their long tentacles and falls

01:17:09into a trap.

01:17:10It may not be the best method ever, because not many animals will even swim into these

01:17:15dark cold parts.

01:17:16But it's the method that saves energy.

01:17:20A giant squid eats only one ounce of fish daily, which is approximately 45 calories.

01:17:26That's nearly 50 times fewer calories than an average person should eat per day.

01:17:31So when a squid gets one fish, it saves it for a couple of days.

01:17:36I hope giant squids won't get the idea to go to the surface and look for food when there's

01:17:41not enough of it in the abyssal zone.

01:17:43And I hope even more that giant Greenland sharks won't get that same idea.

01:17:49You can find them at depths of up to 7,200 feet.

01:17:53They're twice as slow as we usually walk.

01:17:56They swim at a speed of 1.12 feet per second.

01:18:00Their slowness is part of the energy-saving mechanism that creatures down there need to

01:18:04survive.

01:18:05But they can speed up in the form of short bursts when they need to catch prey.

01:18:10But they kinda change their diet from predator to scavenger, considering their environment.

01:18:14There will be more leftovers falling from the surface than animals to go after.

01:18:21Greenland sharks grow just 0.4 inches per year, and they're mostly 20 feet long, which

01:18:27means they live for a very long time, sometimes up to 400 years.

01:18:32They also have a slow metabolism, and that's one of the main factors for their long life,

01:18:38too.

01:18:39Greenland sharks like to spend their time in cold waters.

01:18:42They're adapted to that since their tissues have specific chemical compounds that prevent

01:18:47the forming of ice crystals all over their body.

01:18:50That means they have some sort of natural antifreeze.

01:18:54So what makes them so big?

01:18:57Scientists are still not sure, but some theories try to explain it.

01:19:01There's this thing called Kleiber's rule that says bigger animals tend to be more efficient.

01:19:07Just take a small fish and compare it to a whale, with a mass hundreds of times bigger.

01:19:12The whale has a greater metabolism, it conserves energy more efficiently, and loses less of

01:19:18it to the surroundings through heat.

01:19:21Moving on, bigger animals can ingest bigger prey.

01:19:25They're more likely to go through tough issues in their environment or defend themselves

01:19:29from predators going after them.

01:19:31Also, the body gets bigger when temperatures are lower.

01:19:35The Greenland shark is a perfect example.

01:19:37So are giant sea spiders.

01:19:40Sea spiders are generally common, and you find some very small ones at 0.04 inches.

01:19:47But in deeper parts of the Antarctic, they become three-foot-long giants.

01:19:52They grow so big because the cold water has more oxygen.

01:19:55That way, more of it diffuses into the animal's body, and that allows it to grow bigger.

01:20:00Yeah, both as a creature and a nightmare.

01:20:05And how about this giant tube worm?

01:20:08Researchers found it accidentally while they were exploring the mysteries of the Pacific

01:20:11Ocean floor.

01:20:12They stumbled upon unusual hydrothermal vents.

01:20:16And heat is a thing that gets them going.

01:20:18As water seeps down through faults or cracks in the rock, these vents change their direction.

01:20:24When the water gets out of the vent, it's rich in different minerals and chemicals.

01:20:29Most animals wouldn't survive being around this toxic soup of chemicals, but not these

01:20:34tube worms.

01:20:40They came as a true surprise, because not only are they not bothered by these toxic

01:20:44vents and the almost boiling temperature of the water, but they developed entire ecosystems

01:20:50there.

01:20:51They're unique because they don't need sunlight to survive.

01:20:54Instead, small bacteria are their main source of energy.

01:20:58That bacteria gets their energy directly from these toxic chemicals.

01:21:02So it's not photosynthesis, but a process called chemosynthesis.

01:21:07And these tube worms don't have mouths.

01:21:09These bacteria live inside them.

01:21:12Strange story, huh?

01:21:14Plus, these scary worms reach up to 8 feet.

01:21:19Giant isopods are no better either.

01:21:21They lurk at the depths of the ocean of 1,640 feet or more below, far away from the sunlight,

01:21:28looking like some monstrous wood lice.

01:21:31They spend most of their time on the seabed, hoping to find some food falling from higher

01:21:36levels of the ocean.

01:21:38Check out their small hooked claws at the ends of their legs.

01:21:42These use them to remain more stable while moving around the ocean floor.

01:21:47Since there's no light, they have long antennae that help them feel their way around.

01:21:52These sensory antennas are about half the length of their body.

01:21:56Giant isopods have pretty big eyes compared to their body size, too.

01:22:00They can grow over 12 inches from head to tail.

01:22:03And these fellas are really patient.

01:22:05Remember how we said animals down there rarely get food?

01:22:10Sometimes they need to wait for years to get a proper meal.

01:22:13That's why their metabolism is amazingly slow.

01:22:17Five years later.

01:22:19They can go for five years without eating anything.

01:22:22Imagine that.

01:22:23I get hungry just talking about this.

01:22:27In 2006, a biologist did research to compare the differences between the shallows and the

01:22:32deep sea regions.

01:22:34He realized the deep sea mirrors the island rule.

01:22:37First, isolated parts of land develop biodiversity you won't find anywhere else.

01:22:43Second, small bodied life there grows much bigger when it's isolated compared to life

01:22:48on large land masses.

01:22:51Resources are limited, but also competition and predators.

01:22:55And we don't know much about these deep sea creatures.

01:22:59It's too expensive and too complicated to carry out such research.

01:23:03So we'll just wait for more raging storms to show us at least part of the monstrous

01:23:07world cold ocean depths hide.

01:23:11Hey, let's take a deep dive into ocean waters to see which of these creepy looking animals

01:23:18are our friends.

01:23:19We're swimming in the tropical waters of Nanina Balava Island near Fiji.

01:23:24Can you see those giant creatures the size of a Volkswagen Beetle?

01:23:29Those are manta rays.

01:23:30They've got a long whip-like tail and large flat diamond bodies.

01:23:35There are two species of manta rays, the reef manta ray and the giant manta ray.

01:23:40They belong to the same family as sharks, but they only have small teeth in their lower

01:23:45jaw.

01:23:46They feed on zooplankton, tiny fish, and crustaceans.

01:23:50Manta rays are social animals, and they like people.

01:23:54Once you let them come close to you, they'll swim around you to observe you.

01:23:58Don't chase them, though, because they're super-fast swimmers.

01:24:02Their name translates to cloak or blanket, and out of all sea creatures, they've got

01:24:07the largest brain compared to body weight ratio.

01:24:11These fellas can recognize themselves in a mirror.

01:24:14The Asian sheephead wrasse follows.

01:24:17Even if it seems unsightly, it's one of the friendliest fish you'll come across in the

01:24:22shallow waters of Japan, China, and Korea.

01:24:25It has protrusions on both its jaw and head.

01:24:28It likes to hide in its anemone, and it's usually scared to go out even at 40 inches

01:24:34long.

01:24:35One of these fellas developed a friendship with a Japanese scuba diver 30 years ago.

01:24:40When the diver found the fish, it was injured, and he helped it recover.

01:24:44The diver had been the caretaker of an underwater Shinto shrine.

01:24:49He calls the fish by hitting the underwater bell.

01:24:54Time to go swimming with the largest fish in the world, the whale shark.

01:24:58Though these creatures are sharks, they have a lot in common with whales.

01:25:02They can live for 100 years, though they've got tiny brains.

01:25:06They're indifferent to humans.

01:25:08These fellas don't care about anything they can't eat.

01:25:11And unlike other shark species, they won't bite you.

01:25:15Whale sharks are filter feeders.

01:25:17They do have teeth, 3,000 of them, but they don't use them.

01:25:21They've got a massive mouth, like me, but their throat is only the size of a quarter.

01:25:28Next we have the sunfish, a fish without a tail that looks like it's been cut in half.

01:25:33It has large fins, and when you see it breaching on the surface, you'll think a shark is approaching.

01:25:39The sunfish dives deep in the water to let other fish exfoliate its skin and remove parasites.

01:25:46Once they're done, it returns to the surface to sunbathe.

01:25:50It's also a voracious eater.

01:25:52If it sees you in the waters, it'll likely approach you and observe you.

01:25:56Within a day, you'll be able to feed it from the palm of your hand.

01:26:01Time for the animal that looks like it's always smiling – the bottlenose dolphin.

01:26:06It's one of the most social sea creatures, and it travels in groups.

01:26:10It enjoys playing, hunting, raising calves, and helping out its community.

01:26:15Bottlenose dolphins are excellent swimmers with speeds reaching 19 miles per hour.

01:26:20They usually come up to the surface to breathe air through the blowhole on their head.

01:26:24These creatures are great communicators, and they send messages to each other.

01:26:29They use echolocation to navigate and find food.

01:26:32When they spot people, they become very friendly – so much that they let their guard down,

01:26:38and it makes them vulnerable to other sea creatures such as sharks.

01:26:43Heading to the Pacific coast, we'll come across some gray whales.

01:26:47Their skin is covered with parasites and other organisms that make their snouts look like

01:26:51rough pieces of rock.

01:26:53We gotta get on their nice side first.

01:26:56Gray whales can attack a large boat, a ship, or a vessel if they sense their calves are

01:27:01in danger.

01:27:02But, generally, they're friendly and appear unbothered by rowing kayakers.

01:27:07In some cases, they'll approach small boats and allow humans to touch them.

01:27:11Though you're required by law to keep your distance.

01:27:14If it wants to get closer, it will.

01:27:17If it feels threatened, it will act aggressively.

01:27:21Let me show you a fish with a tool on its head – the hammerhead shark.

01:27:26Their skull helps them with hunting.

01:27:28Their eyes are placed on the hammer's outer edges and gives them a 360-degree vertical

01:27:34view.

01:27:35But they've got a blind spot in front of their nose.

01:27:38Their heads are like metal detectors.

01:27:41Most of what they want is below the sand's surface.

01:27:43So they lightly dip their heads in the sand and sweep up whatever is under there.

01:27:49You'll see them in temperate and tropical waters, both near the shorelines and offshore.

01:27:54They usually move in groups.

01:27:55They're mostly harmless to humans and divers, but there have been a few occasions where

01:28:00they got aggressive.

01:28:02But before they do, they'll give you a bunch of warning signs, and divers know how to handle

01:28:07them.

01:28:09Now I'll show you something kinda smaller – the sea lion.

01:28:13These creatures are a bit tricky.

01:28:15They're playful, aggressive, arrogant, smart, and above all, curious.

01:28:20Sea lions can't breathe underwater, but they can dive almost a thousand feet deep,

01:28:25and they can hold their breath for a long time.

01:28:28They take in air through their nose, and once they dip their heads in the waters, their

01:28:32nostrils slam shut.

01:28:35If they spot humans at the beach, they'll stay away and wait for them to leave.

01:28:39Wild sea lions aren't the friendliest to anyone, especially if they feel threatened.

01:28:44The approachable ones have been trained in captivity.

01:28:48Beluga whales are next.

01:28:50They're white with bulgy heads, and they're amongst the most social and loudest you'll

01:28:54ever meet.

01:28:55Their upwards-facing mouths make them look like they're smiling.

01:28:59When beluga whales are born, they're a dark gray shade.

01:29:03It takes 8 years for their skin to turn white.

01:29:06They can change the shape of their heads by blowing air around their sinuses.

01:29:11Beluga whales love humans.

01:29:13Once they make human friends, they don't want to leave.

01:29:16Even though they're wild animals, they become too entrusting with people.

01:29:21Marine biologists suggest staying away for their safety.

01:29:25Have you heard of sea cows?

01:29:27Those are actually called manatees.

01:29:29You'll see some in rivers and others in the ocean.

01:29:32Even though they're large, they usually stay in shallow coastal areas, munching on

01:29:37seagrass, leaves, and algae.

01:29:40Manatees bring their heads to the surface every 4 minutes or so to breathe.

01:29:44But they can hold their breath longer than that.

01:29:46They're slow travelers, and even if they aren't as smart as dolphins, they can understand

01:29:51colors.

01:29:52These fellas are gentle giants, and they like to approach humans searching for warmth.

01:29:58Next we've got the basking shark.

01:30:01The second-largest shark in the world, their mouth is their most impressive feature, like

01:30:05me, since it can open more than 3 feet wide!

01:30:09Okay, you win.

01:30:10These creatures have an intimidating appearance.

01:30:13But despite their size, they're harmless to humans, and divers swim with them.

01:30:18They're very social and can form schools of 100 individuals.

01:30:22They swim near the water's surface, filter-feeding on plankton.

01:30:26They too have a bunch of teeth that they don't use.

01:30:30Do you know which creature can sing loud songs for 30 minutes?

01:30:34I know!

01:30:35Berry manatee!

01:30:36Hmm, that might be before your time.

01:30:39Actually, it's the humpback whale.

01:30:42Scientists aren't sure why they make those low howls and noises.

01:30:46They might be trying to communicate with others to attract mates.

01:30:50You'll see them near coastlines, feeding on tiny food.

01:30:53And they use their flukes to propel through the water.

01:30:57Humpback whales are less friendly than grey whales because they're very cautious.

01:31:01But they're the heroes of the ocean.

01:31:03They try to save other animals from orcas.

01:31:06And experts say they're capable of decision-making and problem-solving.

01:31:11On one occasion, a humpback whale jumped in to save a whale biologist from a tiger shark.

01:31:17Now let's try to spot the expert in disguise – the Caribbean reef octopus.

01:31:23The specialized color cells help it blend in with the sand and ocean rocks' rough

01:31:28texture.

01:31:29But Caribbean reef octopuses are loners, and they like to get around on their own.

01:31:35This creature is also teeny-tiny.

01:31:37It can grow almost 5 inches and with their legs getting as long as the average person's

01:31:42foot.

01:31:43If you get too close to them, they'll likely turn blue and warn you that they feel threatened.

01:31:49Even though they're trusting, it's better to keep your distance to keep them calm.

01:31:54A weird-looking creature walks around like a living vacuum cleaner down in the ocean's

01:31:59pitch-black depths.

01:32:00I'm talking about sea pigs.

01:32:03They got their name from their pinkish bodies, and they fit in the palm of your hand.

01:32:07These creatures don't swim – they walk around on the seafloor.

01:32:12Their legs consist of 5-7 pairs of enlarged tube feet, and they have tentacles around

01:32:17their mouths to fiddle through the mud to find scum to munch on.

01:32:21Yum-bo!

01:32:22Since they're vulnerable, they have poisonous skin for protection against other sea creatures.

01:32:28If you encounter one, it'll be quite friendly, but if you want to keep it as a pet, you'll

01:32:33need a very deep tank.

01:32:36Speaking of slimy water creatures, let's talk about comb jellies.

01:32:40They're friendly animals that like to swim close to the shore on warm summer evenings.

01:32:45There are two types of comb jellies – some with two tentacles, and some without any.

01:32:51You can spot them at night since they glow in the dark and light up the waters.

01:32:56One of them is the sea gooseberry.

01:32:58On the sand, it looks like a transparent blob of jello, and it can fit into a teaspoon.

01:33:04Unlike jellyfish, comb jellies don't sting because they don't have stinging cells,

01:33:09and they're safe to swim with.

01:33:14Want to high-five a sea creature?

01:33:15Well, put your flipper – I mean, hand up – for the Tasmanian red handfish.

01:33:20This fish doesn't swim like a fish.

01:33:23It walks.

01:33:24It uses its flipper-like hands to stroll around on the ocean floor.

01:33:28These bottom walkers are disturbed by swimmers and boats a lot.

01:33:32Some people even want to take them home as pets.

01:33:35I think it's better to just give them a wave and swim on by.

01:33:40The vampire squid.

01:33:42Its species name is Vampyroteuthis infernalis, which translates to vampire squid from hell.

01:33:48Oh yes, this vampire squid means to terrify everyone with its name.

01:33:53Its dark red color, its spikes at the bottom, and the scary fact that it can basically turn

01:33:59itself inside out.

01:34:01The vampire squid loves putting on a good show, but it's as harmless as a kitten is

01:34:06to humans.

01:34:07It's as if Dracula scared the pants off you, but he didn't have blood-sucking fangs.

01:34:12The vampire squid feeds on food particles from plants and animal matter floating near

01:34:17the ocean's surface.

01:34:19Since they're not predators, they need good defensive strategies, and their vampiric look

01:34:23is designed to ward off large creatures who want to eat them.

01:34:27Turning themselves inside out is a defensive mechanism since the spiky areas in the inner

01:34:32skin are more intimidating.

01:34:34They also shoot out a substance that does not have color, but is packed with bioluminescent

01:34:39particles to distract predators.

01:34:43The vaquita.

01:34:44Going out on a boat off the coast of Mexico sounds like the perfect vacation.

01:34:49The sun, the blue water, the most endangered sea creature.

01:34:53Wait, what?

01:34:54The vaquita isn't dangerous, but don't expect it to stick around to say hello or sign any

01:34:59autographs.

01:35:00It's incredibly shy.

01:35:02This little cow, that's what it means in Spanish, is one tiny sea mammal.

01:35:06With those black markings around its eyes, it looks more like a sea panda to me.

01:35:11Seeing one should make you feel very special.

01:35:13They're on the brink of extinction, mostly because they get caught by accident in fishing

01:35:18nets.

01:35:19It's estimated that there's only 10 left in the wild.

01:35:24The blue dragon.

01:35:25This little creature looks like something out of a kid's fantasy movie.

01:35:29It's called the blue glaucus, casually referred to as the blue dragon or blue angel.

01:35:34It can be found in many places, the Atlantic, Pacific, and Indian Oceans.

01:35:39It's kind of a mollusk and it only grows to be about an inch long.

01:35:43What you think is the back is actually the mollusk's bright underbelly.

01:35:47It regularly floats on its back so that its blue colors help it camouflage with the water's

01:35:52waves.

01:35:53The blue dragon isn't just pretty, it's also smart.

01:35:56It usually feasts on Portuguese man-o-wars, also known as Fissalia fissalis.

01:36:02The blue dragon stores their stinging cells for later use, in essence, stealing their

01:36:07defensive mechanisms.

01:36:09When the blue dragon is threatened, it releases those stinging cells it's stored, directing

01:36:13them at an enemy to sting them with more power than the Portuguese man-o-war would have been

01:36:18capable of.

01:36:19As they can store a huge amount of stinging cells, they can be a threat to humans.

01:36:23So if you find one, don't pick it up.

01:36:26It's best to admire it from a distance.

01:36:29The Barreleye Fish If you ever wanted to have Superman's x-ray

01:36:33vision, looking at the barreleye fish will make you feel like you gained that superpower

01:36:37at some point in your life without even realizing it.

01:36:40The barreleye has a transparent head, so you can see how their eyes and brain look inside.

01:36:46This magnificent creature lives in the deep sea.

01:36:49This is the lowest level of the ocean, where strange creatures roam in near-freezing temperatures

01:36:55and constant darkness.

01:36:57They're exposed to water's pressure that's almost 1,000 times that of the surface.

01:37:02If the idea of the deep sea sends a shiver down your spine, stay tuned to learn about

01:37:07another of its creatures later on.

01:37:09The barreleye fish can be found in the Atlantic, Pacific, and Indian Oceans.

01:37:14You might be wondering, why oh why would a fish have a see-through head?

01:37:18And that would be a fair question.

01:37:20Since the species was discovered in 1939, it was believed that the fish's eyes were

01:37:24set to see straight ahead and couldn't move, so it was assumed that they had tunnel vision.

01:37:31Scientists Bruce Robinson and Kim Riesenbichler from the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute

01:37:36recently discovered that the fish can move its eyes vertically to see through the top

01:37:40of its translucent head, thus noticing if there are predators or prey nearby.

01:37:46The transparent head also allows more light to enter so they can detect prey better.

01:37:51It's believed that the barreleye fish eats jellyfish and small fish species.

01:37:56If you dive in the ocean at night, you might be lucky enough to see how orange ball coralimorph

01:38:02blooms in the dark.

01:38:03But make sure to be quick because as soon as you turn on your flashlight to take a good

01:38:07look, it will retract its tubes back into itself.

01:38:12The Megalodon

01:38:13The whale shark isn't the biggest shark known to humans.

01:38:16If the entire shark species were a kingdom, the prehistoric megalodon would be the ruler

01:38:20of the sea.

01:38:22Megalodon roamed the ocean a long time ago, oh about 15.9 to 2.6 million years back between

01:38:28the early Miocene and late Pliocene eras.

01:38:32While they've long been extinct, people are still amazed to learn about these gigantic

01:38:36sea beasts.

01:38:37Megalodon can reach anywhere between 45 feet to 60 feet in length with jaws more than 6

01:38:43feet wide.

01:38:44A fossil of a tooth that once belonged to a megalodon measured at 7 inches.

01:38:49Needless to say, I'm pretty stoked that these guys have long been extinct.

01:38:53But there's still some adventurers out there hoping to meet this monster one day.

01:38:58The Dumbo Octopus

01:39:00This adorable creature, or creepy creature, or however you want to see it, is officially

01:39:05called Grimpoteuthis.

01:39:07More casually, it's referred to as the Dumbo Octopus, named after the Disney character.

01:39:13Though Dumbo, the elephant, not the octopus, was teased for his big ears, it's highly unlikely

01:39:18that this adorable octopus gets teased by its water neighbors.

01:39:22They are the deepest living octopuses, living in the deep sea.

01:39:26And you know how scary that place is.

01:39:28They're only about 8 inches tall, and spend their days hovering just above the seafloor

01:39:33eating snails, worms, and other food they find in the current or near ocean vents.

01:39:38There are nearly 17 species of Dumbo Octopus, and they all have differences in height, color,

01:39:44and body parts.

01:39:45If you can't get enough strange animals, you'll be glad to learn that the deep sea has barely

01:39:50been explored by humans.

01:39:52So keep an eye out, there are bound to be more fascinating animals discovered in the

01:39:56deep in the future.

01:39:58The Sea Angel

01:40:00These creatures might look and sound pretty cute, but their diet is far from sunshine

01:40:05and lollipops.

01:40:06Their favorite food are sea butterflies.

01:40:09They lay mucus traps for them and wait in ambush.

01:40:13The Squat Anemone Shrimp

01:40:14This shrimp is tiny, only 0.5 inches.

01:40:18It's also known as a dancer shrimp because of its peculiar behavior.

01:40:23When agitated, it raises its bottom above its head and does a little dance.

01:40:28Others also say it readily jumps on their hands and cleans them.

01:40:32The Coconut Crab

01:40:34This guy may look pretty creepy, especially when the sun goes down.

01:40:38Mature coconut crabs are around 3 feet in length.

01:40:41Their preferred foods are coconuts, but they can also hunt down lizards and even large

01:40:47birds.

01:40:48The Slender Snipe Eel

01:40:50Slender Snipe Eel is a slim and long creature that's still a mystery for marine scientists.

01:40:56It's 4 feet long and it has at least 750 bones in its spine, which is much more than

01:41:02any other animal in the world.

01:41:05The Sea Pen

01:41:06Sea Pen is 7 feet long and it has a lot of varieties, but most of them look indeed like

01:41:11a pen or a quill.

01:41:13The similarity is even more striking when the animal has a water-filled bulb that anchors

01:41:17it to the floor.

01:41:20The Persian Carpet Flatworm

01:41:22This creature looks indeed like a carpet, despite being very small by comparison.

01:41:27It's only 4 inches long, able to become both male and female.

01:41:31It doesn't really mate with other flatworms.

01:41:33Rather, it fights them for the right to bear posterity.

01:41:37The Flamingo Tongue Sea Snails

01:41:39Tourists love these extraordinary snails for their pretty colors.

01:41:43Thinking it's a shell, but in fact, the shell is quite dull and hidden underneath colorful

01:41:48soft tissues.

01:41:49They eat softer, toxic parts of corals and store their toxins to protect themselves.

01:41:55So, you're diving in the Atlantic Ocean, and suddenly, you realize you haven't seen anyone

01:42:04else around for a while.

01:42:06You come up to the surface, and your boat's gone.

01:42:09No!

01:42:10In the distance, you can see an ocean buoy you can climb onto.

01:42:15You scramble to safety and look out at the open ocean around you.

01:42:19There's nothing but blue in every direction, except…

01:42:23Something large moving in the water grabs your attention.

01:42:26A dorsal fin breaks through the surface.

01:42:30It's all over!

01:42:31It's a great big sh… wait a minute.

01:42:34It just rolled onto its side!

01:42:36Oh, it's not a shark at all!

01:42:38You just encountered the heaviest bonefish in the world – the sunfish.

01:42:44It can grow up to 14 feet long, and it lives deep down in the ocean.

01:42:49What you're seeing is the sunfish surfacing.

01:42:52Some people call it the Mola Mola.

01:42:54It mostly dines on jellyfish and can dive down anywhere from 600 to 2,600 feet.

01:43:00It's not sunbathing or anything – it's letting seabirds eat any little bugs that

01:43:05try to get away with a free ride.

01:43:07A delicious meal, I'm sure.

01:43:10The sunfish is so large and heavy, it's extremely difficult for scientists to study

01:43:16Especially when it swims down so deep.

01:43:19The Mola Mola, just like the jellyfish, is not even a fish – it's a plankton.

01:43:24It's kind of a laid-back creature that drifts with the current rather than swimming against

01:43:29it like normal fish.

01:43:31The sheepshead fish lives around the Gulf of Mexico and off the West Atlantic.

01:43:36It lives quite far down from the surface, and I hope it stays down there.

01:43:41Its teeth help snag its favorite food, shellfish.

01:43:45While it may look scary at first, the sheepshead fish is a regular at fish markets and some

01:43:50restaurants if you're game to try it.

01:43:53I know I wouldn't eat anything with teeth that look like mine.

01:43:58The world's most misunderstood fish also happens to look like the saddest.

01:44:03The blobfish lives deep down off the coasts of Australia and New Zealand.

01:44:09It's considered one of the strangest creatures ever caught, and for good reason.

01:44:13This fish just isn't made for the surface.

01:44:16It looks like a melting pile of goo with a frown.

01:44:20One thing we know about deep-sea fish is that we don't know anything about what really

01:44:24goes on down there.

01:44:26So you make it to dry land, and you hear a deep grumbling sound coming from the muddy

01:44:31sand nearby.

01:44:33Some strange eel-like animals are moving around.

01:44:36They might be cute, but picking one up might be a big mistake.

01:44:40They might mistake your finger for a nice mid-afternoon snack.

01:44:45The giant mudskipper lives throughout Southeast Asia and, surprisingly, can outrun a human

01:44:51if needed for a little while at least.

01:44:53They love muddy water, so they mostly hang out near shorelines.

01:44:58What makes these fish unique is that they spend most of their time out of the water.

01:45:03Although they only grow to about 1 foot long, they can jump about 2 feet.

01:45:09The walking trees of the Amazon are one of the biggest secrets of the forest.

01:45:13You head over there.

01:45:16These trees aren't walking around with legs like you or me, but they're still able to

01:45:20move about 60 feet every year or two.

01:45:23What happens is that new roots search for sunlight while the old roots leave the soil,

01:45:29one root in front of the other.

01:45:32Their movements are incredibly slow.

01:45:34You won't be able to sit there and watch them strut their stuff.

01:45:37But if you've got nothing but time on your hands, you'll notice the trees shifting

01:45:42week by week, trying to find the best possible light.

01:45:47You're walking in the West African jungle, whistling away.

01:45:51You pick up a small stick to get rid of some spiderwebs in your path.

01:45:55It's all good until you realize that stick is tickling your hand and bending.

01:46:01Lucky for you, you just picked up a giant African millipede.

01:46:06They grow to about a foot long, so they kind of look like a small snake.

01:46:10That tickling you feel is their 250 legs wiggling around.

01:46:15These millipedes are part of the same family as crabs and spiders, but they only really

01:46:20eat plants and fallen leaves.

01:46:24You hop over to Nevada for a nice walk – hey, why not?

01:46:28It's way too hot, so you decide to jump into that nice pool of water you just found.

01:46:33The only problem?

01:46:35This place is way off-limits, and swimming definitely isn't allowed.

01:46:39Why?

01:46:40Because of what could be the rarest fish in the world – the pupfish.

01:46:45They only grow about an inch long, and they only live here.

01:46:48They're precious and protected fish, so read the signs and don't even think about

01:46:53going swimming anywhere near them.

01:46:56The pupfish's backyard pool has another claim to fame – it's an earthquake indicator.

01:47:02When there's an earthquake, say in Indonesia, Japan, or China, waves start popping up right

01:47:07there in Nevada.

01:47:10You wouldn't be wrong for wanting to get your eyes checked if you saw this little guy

01:47:14sniffing around.

01:47:15The star-nosed mole is one of the weirdest creatures anywhere.

01:47:20Each one of the feelers on its nose help the almost-blind mole find its food.

01:47:26Its nose is so sensitive, it can feel five times more than a human hand.

01:47:31That's not all – star-nosed moles are also the world's fastest eaters.

01:47:35Wow, faster than me!

01:47:37They can even smell around for food underwater.

01:47:40Is there anything this mole can't do?

01:47:44Tardigrades, or as they're sometimes called, water bears, are one of the most interesting

01:47:49creatures on the planet, and also the craziest.

01:47:53These microscopic animals are the toughest creatures on Earth.

01:47:56How tough, you ask?

01:47:58Well, you can find them in the deepest parts of the ocean, high up on mountaintops, in

01:48:03volcanoes, rainforests, and even Antarctica.

01:48:07They're also the first animals to survive exposure to outer space.

01:48:12They can sleep for thousands of years without any food or water, and then get up and walk

01:48:16it off like it was nothing.

01:48:19The water bear could rule the planet, if only it was a little bigger.

01:48:24The blue glaucus looks something like out of a sci-fi movie.

01:48:28But no, this little animal is the weird uncle of the sea slug family, and you definitely

01:48:34don't want to pick it up.

01:48:36It blends perfectly into the ocean waves as it floats on the surface.

01:48:40The glaucus's bright shade of blue helps it melt into its background, but that's

01:48:45not what makes it special.

01:48:47Its sting is quite potent and not very pleasant, but the glaucus doesn't even produce its

01:48:52own venom.

01:48:53It just steals it off of other venomous water creatures.

01:48:57Not bad for something that's only an inch long!

01:49:01How about a delicious coconut?

01:49:03You need to regroup after seeing so many weird animals.

01:49:06Luckily, a coconut just fell from that tree.

01:49:09Although, something else fell as well.

01:49:13It seems like this coconut's already got an owner.

01:49:17Coconut crabs find coconuts on the floor and rip off that hairy brown stuff that's all

01:49:22over them.

01:49:23Then they grab the coconut with a claw and climb up a tree.

01:49:27From there, they chuck it down to the ground to open it up.

01:49:30So the crab's up there, and its lunch is down on the ground.

01:49:34No problem!

01:49:35Coconut crabs love to jump from trees and can land unharmed from a 15-foot fall.

01:49:41This is one crab you wouldn't want to try to catch with your hands.

01:49:45The coconut crab's claw is the strongest of all crustaceans.

01:49:49If it can bust through a coconut, mmm, yeah!

01:49:53By now, you've seen your share of crazy, but no one is prepared for the hagfish.

01:49:59This fish looks like an eel, but with one extra superpower – slime!

01:50:05Less than a teaspoon of slime when combined with water can multiply up to 10,000 times!

01:50:11Once the hagfish oozes out its slime, nothing can get close.

01:50:15And what if some of the slime gets into its own nose?

01:50:18It learned to sneeze it out.

01:50:21They're also boneless and made entirely out of cartilage.

01:50:25Last one for today, introducing the purple frog.

01:50:29Not a very exciting name, I know.

01:50:31The purple frog is a strange-looking frog species.

01:50:34It looks like it just ate way too much, and it's got a nose like no other.

01:50:39What makes this creature even stranger is that it lives underground, and I don't mean

01:50:44just for a short while.

01:50:46The purple frog only comes out of its hole for two weeks a year.

01:50:51It mainly eats termites it finds underground, so why would it bother coming up to the surface

01:50:56at all?

01:51:00Prepare yourself for some weird stuff!

01:51:02We're going to dive into the fascinating world of sea cucumbers, the squishy detritivores

01:51:08that are nature's very own recyclers.

01:51:11These exotic marine creatures might not be everyone's first choice for a pet, but trust

01:51:16me, they've got some unique talents that are worth talking about.

01:51:21Sea cucumbers are colorful little creatures with a digestive tract that's basically just

01:51:25a hole at either end.

01:51:27Their bodies are fat and squishy, covered in leathery skin, and guess what?

01:51:32They breathe through their butts!

01:51:34These amazing creatures have found a way to make the most out of every part of their body,

01:51:39few as they are.

01:51:41You might be wondering what sea cucumbers do with their unique set of skills.

01:51:45Well, they play a crucial role in cleaning our planet's waters.

01:51:50They munch on all the debris found on the seabed and break it down internally, removing

01:51:55all the bad stuff in the process.

01:51:57It's like having little vacuums cleaning up the ocean floor.

01:52:02Believe it or not, sea cucumbers are in high demand in the kitchen, too.

01:52:06They're harvested and traded in many countries.

01:52:09The Asian market, in particular, absolutely loves them.

01:52:13You can find them being sold cooked and dried under all sorts of fancy names.

01:52:18Or if you prefer a more direct approach, you can just call them sea slugs.

01:52:23Now here's the fun part – a dried sea cucumber can cost you up to a whopping $1,400 per pound!

01:52:32These squishy delicacies are truly worth their weight!

01:52:36But let's take a step back in time.

01:52:39The tradition of eating sea cucumbers goes way back, more than a thousand years in Asia

01:52:44to be precise.

01:52:46And as demand for these curious creatures grew, so did the need to find them elsewhere.

01:52:51This led to over-exploitation of local fisheries, causing sea cucumber stocks to diminish in

01:52:57many countries.

01:52:58Uh-oh, not good for our little sea cucumber friends!

01:53:02One of the most interesting examples of sea cucumbers is the pink see-through fantasia.

01:53:08Not only does it look amazing, but it also has this great defense system, where it uses

01:53:13bioluminescence to scare off predators.

01:53:17Thankfully, some brilliant researchers around the world have decided to act.

01:53:22They're on a mission to breed sea cucumbers and replenish the depleted fisheries.

01:53:27They're also exploring how these creatures can be a reasonable food resource and help

01:53:32reduce the damage done by fish farming.

01:53:35In Scotland, for instance, where a team of enthusiastic students started a company for

01:53:40this particular purpose.

01:53:42Their goal?

01:53:43To figure out how sea cucumbers can absorb as much of the bad stuff they can in the water.

01:53:48They might just be the aquatic superheroes we've been waiting for!

01:53:53Meanwhile, in Sweden, marine biologists are working hard to restore the population of

01:53:58red signal sea cucumbers.

01:54:00These poor creatures have been fished out of local waters, but specialists are determined

01:54:05to give them a fighting chance.

01:54:07They're also exploring how sea cucumbers can fit into seafood cultivation.

01:54:12Their lab is like a sea cucumber daycare, carefully nurturing the next generation of

01:54:17these wiggly wonders.

01:54:20And let's not forget about Canada.

01:54:22Research scientists are focusing on the giant red sea cucumber.

01:54:27These magnificent creatures can grow up to 20 inches long and are perfect for co-cultivation

01:54:32with other species.

01:54:34They're even developing special containment systems that will make it easier to keep sea

01:54:39cucumbers where they're needed the most.

01:54:42Okay, speaking of amazing sea creatures, what about a fish that can fly?

01:54:47Heard that right, we're about to stumble upon a land where fins meet flying.

01:54:52And the ocean becomes a runway for these airborne acrobats.

01:54:56Prepare to be fin-tastically entertained.

01:54:59Nah, I didn't write that one.

01:55:01So picture this, you're lounging by the warm ocean waters, minding your own business, when

01:55:07suddenly you see a fish soaring through the air like a torpedo.

01:55:11That's right, they are real, and they got some serious style.

01:55:15With their sleek bodies and pectoral fins that resemble wings, they're the high-flyers

01:55:20of the sea.

01:55:21Now, you might be wondering, why would a fish take to the skies?

01:55:25Well, it turns out these magnificent creatures have developed this nifty gliding ability

01:55:31as a sneaky trick to escape from their underwater foes.

01:55:35And boy do they have plenty of enemies.

01:55:38Those guys are all on the lookout for a tasty flying fish snack.

01:55:41When it comes to their diet, these avian fishes are quite the foodies.

01:55:46They chow down on a variety of treats, including the ever-popular plankton.

01:55:52Who knew tiny floating organisms could be so delicious?

01:55:55Now, let's take a closer look at the flying fish family album.

01:56:00We've got a whopping 40 known species strutting their stuff in the sky.

01:56:05And here's a fun fact, all of them have tails that are forked in an uneven manner.

01:56:11With the lower lobe being longer than the upper one.

01:56:14It's like the fishy version of a funky hairstyle.

01:56:19And there's more.

01:56:20Some of these weird flyers even have super-sized pelvic fins, giving them the appearance of

01:56:25having four wings.

01:56:27Can you imagine the envy in the fish community when they see these trendsetters gliding by?

01:56:33Ok, now let's get to the nitty-gritty of their airborne adventures.

01:56:38The flying fish take-off is a sight to behold.

01:56:41First they gather some serious speed underwater, reaching a zippy 37 mph.

01:56:47That's faster than some highway speed limits.

01:56:50Then like a rocket ready for blast-off, they angle themselves upward and break the ocean

01:56:55surface, ready to take flight.

01:56:58But they don't stop there.

01:57:00These thrill-seekers can reach heights of over 4 feet in the air.

01:57:04Can you imagine the view from up there?

01:57:06They glide through the sky, covering long distances.

01:57:09That's like the fishy equivalent of a marathon.

01:57:12And here's the best part.

01:57:14When they approach the water again, they can flap their tails and continue their flight

01:57:19without fully returning to the depths.

01:57:22These fishy flyers are also all about the nightlife.

01:57:26Just like party-goers flock to a glittering disco ball, flying fish are attracted to light.

01:57:32Crafty fishermen take advantage of this by setting up canoes with just the right amount

01:57:37of water to keep the fish comfy but prevent them from escaping.

01:57:41Then they add a luring light to the scene, and before you know it, flying fish are caught

01:57:47left and right, supplying a bountiful catch for those lucky fishermen.

01:57:52Don't worry though, these flying fish aren't on the endangered species list.

01:57:56Not yet at least.

01:57:58The next time you find yourself by the ocean, keep an eye out for these marvelous creatures.

01:58:03You'll never know when you'll see a flying fish extravaganza.

01:58:09Our next adventure takes us into the quirky world of underwater romance.

01:58:13Picture this.

01:58:14A scene that looks like someone doing the tango with their lunch.

01:58:18Wait, what?

01:58:19No, it's not a throwing-up contest, I promise.

01:58:23We're diving head-first into the jaw-dropping, pun intended, mating ritual of the jawfish.

01:58:30These curious creatures call the coral reefs of the Caribbean Sea and the Western Atlantic

01:58:35home.

01:58:36And boy, do they know how to make a spectacle of themselves.

01:58:40Forget about pick-up lines or fancy gestures, these jawfish rely on their unique jaw-based

01:58:46moves to pursue their potential partners.

01:58:49It's like a dance-off, but with their mouths.

01:58:53Not only are these fishy fellas skilled in the art of sand-scooping, but they also double

01:58:57as diligent parents.

01:59:00Talk about alliteration.

01:59:01I mean, talk about multitasking.

01:59:03The males take their parental duties to the next level by carrying the precious eggs in

01:59:08their giant mouths until they're ready to hatch.

01:59:12It's like they have their own aquatic daycare center going on.

01:59:16When they're not busy nurturing their offspring, these jawfish transform their mouths into

01:59:21fighting tools.

01:59:23That's right, it's time for the Jawfish Fighting Championship.

01:59:27They go head-to-head, or rather mouth-to-mouth, in epic battles of mouth strength and agility.

01:59:34You know the old saying, put your money where your mouth is?

01:59:37Well, these jawfish take it to a whole new level.

01:59:41Whether it's for romance, parenting, or friendly competition, these jawfish show us that sometimes

01:59:48actions do really speak louder than words.

01:59:51They may look like they're having a bad seafood experience, but rest assured, it's just their

01:59:56unique way of finding love and expressing themselves.

02:00:03450 million years ago, no I wasn't around then, the sea level was higher, coral reefs

02:00:08started to form, the climate on our planet was stable and warm, not even dinosaurs were

02:00:13around yet.

02:00:14The time when bony and jawed fish we know as sharks appeared.

02:00:19They've been dominating the oceans and making other marine creatures flee in fear ever since.

02:00:24Many of them, like great white sharks, have evolved and adjusted to life in the open ocean

02:00:29as hunters with a pretty high position in the food chain.

02:00:32They're less diverse today than before.

02:00:35One of the reasons is the asteroid strike from the age of dinosaurs.

02:00:39After it reduced the number of shark species, only smaller and deep-water kinds that ate

02:00:43primarily fish survived.

02:00:45They started getting bigger over time.

02:00:48Near the surface, sharks such as makos or great white ones develop faster movements

02:00:53and are somewhat between gray and blue to blend in with their surroundings.

02:00:58The epaulette shark can even walk on the land.

02:01:00It can't take a walk on the beach because it can't breathe outside of the water, but it

02:01:04lives on coral flats in shallow tropical waters, so it can walk in kind of a crawling motion.

02:01:11But deep down below, there are mysterious alien-looking, often huge shark species that

02:01:17didn't come to the surface.

02:01:19Which is why they didn't need to adjust to the new environment and different conditions.

02:01:23They haven't changed a lot through time, so they're some living fossils.

02:01:28These creatures mostly don't have 5 gill slits, the most common number, but 6 or 7.

02:01:34It's because there's less oxygen the deeper you go in the ocean, so they need more gill

02:01:38slits.

02:01:40Sharks on the surface evolved to have fewer gill slits.

02:01:44Skillsharks are the most primitive sharks we have today.

02:01:47Their skeletons are like those of ancient extinct sharks, and they can survive only

02:01:52in very deep waters.

02:01:54Like cats, sharks have a layer of reflective cells placed inside their eyes, which helps

02:01:59them see better in the dark, deep sea, or cloudy waters.

02:02:04Sharks on the surface have big eyes because they evolved to hunt in the sunlight, so they

02:02:08tend to rely on their vision.

02:02:10Sharks that live in shallow waters have small eyes, so they can protect themselves from

02:02:14the sand.

02:02:16Like some other deep sea creatures, sixgill sharks also have bigger eyes to take in as

02:02:20much light as possible.

02:02:22They have more light-sensing rods, but don't distinguish colors that well.

02:02:27In the ocean's twilight zone, with the minimum of sunlight, there's a couple of bioluminescent

02:02:32shark species.

02:02:33They don't take in light within their eyes, but produce or re-emit it with their bodies.

02:02:38Their skin or organs have specialized cells that produce a soft blue-green light.

02:02:44Deep sea creatures that produce their own light do that to attract their prey, deter

02:02:48animals from going after them, or, scientists think, communicate with each other.

02:02:54It can even help them to camouflage.

02:02:57They do it by hiding their silhouettes from animals going after them.

02:03:00They produce enough light to match their surroundings.

02:03:04The biggest luminous underwater creature is the kitefin shark.

02:03:08Found swimming 980 feet below sea level, preying on groundfish or smaller sharks, it can grow

02:03:14almost 6 feet long and lives 3,200 feet below sea level.

02:03:20Deep sea sharks are also bigger than those on the surface.

02:03:23The Greenland shark can grow up to 24 feet long, bigger than a great white.

02:03:28There's a thing called deep sea gigantism.

02:03:31Creatures in nutrient-poor depths of the ocean grow bigger because, that way, they lose less

02:03:36energy as heat.

02:03:38The Greenland shark lives its life in slow motion.

02:03:41It has a slow metabolism and can go very long periods without food.

02:03:46With their slow pace, they evolve to live up to 500 years at depths of 7,200 feet.

02:03:53Sharks in shallow waters catch their prey, relying on agility and speed.

02:03:58And for them, it's easier because there's plenty of food on the surface.

02:04:02Deep sea sharks, with less food and slower life rhythm, had to develop a different style.

02:04:07They're more opportunistic, definitely not picky, and don't care if their future meal

02:04:12is alive or not.

02:04:15Frilled shark, another living fossil from the darkest depths, hasn't evolved much through

02:04:19time, and they're one of the last of their kind, with all of their relatives already

02:04:24gone extinct.

02:04:25It grows up to 7 feet long, primarily hunts on squid, and catches other sharks and fish.

02:04:31It looks like a dinosaur, a snake-like face, a long, smooth, thin body that moves in a

02:04:37serpentine way.

02:04:39It can propel itself with the power of its tail and curl like snakes.

02:04:43They don't swim in a straight line like other sharks.

02:04:46Cookie cutter shark grows up to 20 inches.

02:04:49It got the name because of the way it feeds, biting off small pieces.

02:04:53It's a parasite creature, which means it feeds off bigger animals but leaves them alive.

02:04:59They have sharp teeth and sometimes even swallow those that fall off on purpose.

02:05:04Some researchers think it could be because they live in the depths that are nutrient-poor.

02:05:09If they swallow the teeth, they could recycle calcium and other material from it.

02:05:14Prickly shark is a rare and unusual creature with many thorn-like denticles and two small

02:05:19dorsal fins.

02:05:21It lives mostly in the depths of the Pacific region up to 1,900 feet.

02:05:26Ghost sharks are not even real sharks, but fish closely related to them and rays.

02:05:32They have big pectoral and pelvic fins, two dorsal fins, pretty big eyes, and, unlike

02:05:37their cousins, have a single external gill opening.

02:05:41Ghost sharks have slender tails and can grow up to 80 inches, silver to blackish color.

02:05:47They sometimes live in rivers and coastal waters, but also in the depths of the ocean

02:05:52of 8,200 feet or even deeper.

02:05:55They are pretty weak swimmers, so they tend to feed on invertebrates and small fish.

02:06:01Goblin sharks Swimming through the deep sea, this creepy

02:06:05shark with a flabby body suddenly sees a small innocent squid.

02:06:09It goes toward it, but the potential snack notices it and quickly starts moving to dart

02:06:14away.

02:06:15It seems like the plan could work at first, but then the shark suddenly thrusts the jaw

02:06:19of its mouth and catches the poor little squid in a second.

02:06:23After the meal is finished, the animal simply fits the jaw back into the mouth and goes

02:06:28away as if nothing happened.

02:06:30This is possible because it has a jaw connected to 3-inch long flaps of skin, which is why

02:06:36it can unfold from the snout.

02:06:38It can grow up to 12 feet long with a weight of 460 pounds.

02:06:43Most think goblin sharks are mostly active in the morning and evening.

02:06:47The shark has a long, prominent snout and specific sensing organs on it.

02:06:51It uses them to sense electrical fields in the dark oceanic depths.

02:06:56Sevengill shark is a big cow shark, brown to silver-gray on top, white underneath, black

02:07:02and white spots, with a thick body, a small dorsal fin, and a wide, blunt snout.

02:07:08It can grow up to 10 feet long, mostly lives in the depth of 1,870 feet, but you can also

02:07:14find it in deep channels and bays.

02:07:16It can be aggressive toward humans if provoked.

02:07:19So don't.

02:07:20Like most deep-sea creatures, it's an opportunistic hunter that's not quite picky, but likes

02:07:26to go after dolphins, seals, porpoises, and other marine animals.

02:07:31Megamouth sharks mostly live in the depths of 15,000 feet and spend most of their time

02:07:36in the dark, like me.

02:07:39Scientists discovered it in 1976 because it went near the surface at night to feed on

02:07:44zooplankton.

02:07:45That's the only time these sharks go there.

02:07:48During the day, they return to their quiet, dark, and mysterious depths.

02:07:52They are filter feeders, which means they keep their mouths wide open while swimming,

02:07:57so they filter the planktons they like to eat.

02:08:00There are organs that produce light inside of their mouths, which attracts potential

02:08:04prey, such as pelagic crustaceans.

02:08:07These sharks live in the deep parts of the ocean, but you can rarely find them below

02:08:11almost 2 miles.

02:08:14Scientists think some other, stronger bony fishes out-competed them.

02:08:18Deep parts of oceans became oxygenated around 70 million years ago, and sharks have been

02:08:23around way longer.

02:08:25But bony fishes adjusted and adapted efficient ways to use oxygen, while sharks were slow

02:08:30with adaptations, so they lost.

02:08:34Also, oceanic depths are way colder, which is challenging for fish and the rest of cold-blooded

02:08:39animals because the speed of their metabolism widely depends upon the external temperature.

02:08:45That's it for today!

02:08:46So hey, if you pacified your curiosity, then give the video a like and share it with your

02:08:51friends!

02:08:52Or if you want more, just click on these videos and stay on the Bright Side!

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