Sea Creatures: ‘Unicorn of the Sea’ – Strange and Giant Deep-Sea Glow Worm

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This is one of the weirdest sea creatures I know!

Rare images of the Pyrostremma spinosum, also known as ‘Unicorn of the Sea’ were captured by divers in Australia.

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Huge deep-sea glow worm called the ‘Unicorn of the Sea’ grows to size of two double-decker buses. Photo: Eaglehawk Dive Centre

AUSSIE divers have captured rare images of a creature dubbed the unicorn of the sea in the depths of the ocean.

The Pyrostremma spinosum, or pyrosome, sea creature is so rare it was dubbed the unicorn. It can grow up to 30 metres long. Imagine this sea monster!

What is this strange animal?

Its hollow, translucent, cylindrical body is made up of thousands of tiny clones called zooids that pull water through its tubes and feed on plankton before pushing the filtered water back out.

The zooids are each connected by tissue and move as one inside the pyrosome’s tube structure and each zooid is a few millimetres in size.

Also called a sea squirt, the pyrosomes are classed as pelagic, which means they are free-swimming and live in open water rather than near land.

Wow creepy, no?

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2 Comments

  1. […] These jelly-like organisms are pyrosomes and typically live in tropical waters around the world. But no one has ever recorded pyrosomes as far north as Alaska – although they appeared along the West Coast last summer. […]

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