See If You Can Guess These Unusual Sea Animals

See if you can guess what the animal is based on these hints before scrolling down to see the answer:

Animal #1

Hint: Known as the “doomsday fish,” this deep sea fish got its name from Japanese folklore that resulted from it washing up on beaches before natural disasters.

This animal is: The Oarfish

Facts about Oarfish:

• These animals hold the world record for the longest bony fish alive today. 

  • Because they are bony fish, oarfish can weigh up to 600 pounds.

  • The oarfish can also grow up to 36 feet (although they are typically closer to 10 feet).

• These fish eat by straining krill and squid from the water and collecting them with specialized gills.

  • One fish was seen to have 10,000 krill when caught off the coast. 

• These fish are famous in ancient legends due to their rarity and unusual appearance.

  • The Japanese folklore that inspired their nickname is only one example of the many pieces of legend and folklore about these ribbon-like creatures.

Animal #2

Hint: This animal is the second largest fish (not animal) in the world, coming after the whale shark, and is a filter feeder.

This animal is: The Basking Shark

Facts about the Basking Shark:

• This fish, being the second largest in the world, can grow up to 45 feet long and weigh up to 10,000 pounds.

• Basking sharks have the largest offspring of any fish, as baby basking sharks are six feet long, with great white shark offspring a close second. 

• Despite their massive size, these sharks have been observed jumping out of the water.

  • One theory is that this behavior occurs when the shark needs to get rid of parasites.

• Sometimes, these fish are very solitary, while on other occasions they have been observed to travel in groups of up to 100 members. 

Animal #3 

Hint: These relatives of seahorses and pipefish disguise themselves as leaves for camouflage. 

This animal is: The Leafy Seadragon

Facts about the Leafy Seadragon:

• This camouflages not only through the leaf-like appendages all over its body, but also by changing color. As they change locations, the leafy seadragon can actually change its colors, allowing it to camouflage itself more effectively.

• The leafy seadragon is the state fish of South Australia.

• These animals are capable of staying completely still for multiple days, allowing them to further play into their disguise.

• The leafy seadragon does not have teeth or a stomach. It is a filter feeder that needs to take in a large quantity of micro-creatures to sustain itself.

• Like seahorses, the leafy seadragon males carry the eggs.