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Category: Animal of the Deep

Snailfish

animal Type Maximum Size 50 cm (20 inches) Depth Tide pools–8,300 m (up to 27,200 feet) Habitat Seafloor From tide pools (intertidal zone) to abyssal zone and trenches (hadal zone), occasionally midwater Diet Invertebrates Range Worldwide About It’s stick or swim for these fishes. Most snailfishes (family Liparidae) live near the seafloor, riding the currents …

Acorn worm

Acorn worms move along the deep seafloor feasting on organic material and locking away carbon from the ocean’s surface.

Predatory tunicate

The predatory tunicate uses a cavernous hood to snap up unsuspecting crustaceans and other morsels of food.

Midwater octopus

animal Type Maximum Size 16 cm (6 inches) total length Depth 200–1,200 m (660–3,900 feet) Habitat Midwater Twilight (mesopelagic) zone and upper midnight (bathypelagic) zone, including the oxygen minimum zone Diet Zooplankton Including crustaceans and siphonophores Range Worldwide Tropical and subtropical waters, as well as cold temperate waters in the North Pacific Ocean About This …

Armored sea cucumber

The armored sea cucumber holds tight to the seafloor, with feathery tentacles to catch food and hard scales to protect from predators.

Crystal amphipod

Invisible armor and giant eyes help the crystal amphipod survive life in the expansive waters of the ocean’s twilight zone.

Fingered goblet sponge

Massive fingered goblet sponges grow together in dense gardens that offer safety and shelter for an assortment of other animals.

Mystery mollusc

animal Type Maximum Size 14.5 cm (5.5 inches) Depth 1,000–4,000 m (3,300–13,100 feet) Habitat Midwater Midnight (bathypelagic) zone Diet Crustaceans Including mysid shrimp Range Northeastern Pacific Ocean Oregon to Southern California, but possibly more widespread About Our first sighting of this unique sea slug stumped our scientists. In early 2000, we encountered a curious critter …

Dinner plate jelly

The dinner plate jelly is one of the ocean’s top predators, with an appetite for other gelatinous animals.

Giant cusk-eel

The giant cusk-eel has a keen sense of smell to find food on the sprawling deep seafloor.