Forget space — there’s an alien universe here on Earth. And with alien territory comes alien life, much of which is rarely observed by humans. They live in the deepest part of the world’s oceans known as the Mariana Trench. Here are some of the weirdest creatures that inhabit it.
Deepest Depth: 23,000 feet
Coolest Fact: Males deliver semen to females using one of their eight arms.
Deepest Depth: 3,320 feet
Coolest Fact: Its color-bright red-acts as camouflage. Bright red appears jet-black at extreme depths.
Deepest Depth: 6,600 feet
Coolest Fact: Once the male anglerfish matures, it loses ability to digest food. The male has to latch onto a female and secrete an enzyme which fuses the two together for life, allowing the male to live off nutrients within the females’ blood. Ze Frank said it best.
Deepest Depth: 4,920 feet
Coolest Fact: The bioluminescent barbel attached to its head can be turned on and off, giving the dragonfish the unique ability to attract prey and confuse predators.
Deepest Depth: 19,685 feet
Coolest Fact: A team of scientists dubbed it the Headless Chicken Fish, but it’s not a fish at all: It is a deep-sea cucumber and a relative of the starfish.
Deepest Depth: 3,280 feet
Coolest Fact: Females are about 12 times larger than males — 24 inches vs. 2 inches.
Deepest Depth: 6,867 feet
Coolest Fact: Specialized cells called cnidocytes capture prey, including crustaceans and formainiferans.
Deepest Depth: 4,920 feet
Coolest Fact: Special organs allow the deep-sea hatchetfish to remain invisible to predators, matching the surrounding light from any depth.
Deepest Depth: 6,561 feet
Coolest Fact: Wide-angle vision allows it to see 180 degrees up or down, left or right.
Deepest Depth: 150 feet
Coolest Fact: While not a member of the Mariana Trench family, its nickname is the Sea Nut, which is awesome in itself.
Deepest Depth: 4,900 feet
Coolest Fact: The flatfish can change its pigmentation to camouflage from predators.
Deepest Depth: 26,700 feet
Coolest Fact: In early December, scientists observed the snailfish swimming deeper than any other animal on earth.
Deepest Depth: 35,800 feet
Coolest Fact: James Cameron directed, wrote, produced, and edited “Titanic” just so he could visit it in a submarine. Literally.
