From purple feather dusters, to glowing opalescent goo, siphonophores – a group of marine invertebrates related to jellyfish and corals – have long been recognised as some of the ocean's weirdest creatures. And the latest addition, spotted off the coast of Angola, doesn't disappoint!
The footage was captured by a team at BP Global, who were carrying out routine operations near an oil well when they came across the noodle-like animal. Intrigued by their find, they sent the footage to scientists at the National Oceanography Centre, who helped identify the species as Bathyphysa conifera.
Like all siphonophores, the aptly nicknamed 'flying spaghetti monster' is actually a group of tiny animals called zooids. They don't come together to form a colony, but rather arise by budding off the first zooid, which develops from a fertilised egg. Over 175 species of siphonophore have been seen in the world's oceans, some of them reaching lengths of 40 metres (131 ft). We're always excited when one we hadn't seen before pops up!
Top header image: BP Global
Deep Ocean
WTF!?
Deep Ocean
