It may seem hard to believe, but only 5% of the seabed on the land planet has been explored today. This means that there are still countless wonders beneath the surface waiting to be discovered.
The Marianas moat is a geological feature so massive, so vast and so imposing that it makes the Everest look like a mole in comparison. We are talking about the Marian Trench, an underwater wound in Earth's crust that is five times longer than the Grand Canyon and much, much deeper.
The mysterious Marianas Trench
In fact, the Marianas Trench is the deepest part of any place on Earth. Estimates vary a little, but in their blackest depths, there is a fold called the Challenger Abyss, about 10,984 meters or about 10.9 kilometers deep. If we invested Everest and plunged it into the Mariana, the steepest peak of the mountain would still have 2,134 meters to reach the bottom.
It is such a strange place that until the last decades, scientists had almost no clue as to the kind of life forms that could live there. This happens because when we submerge below 1,000 meters in the ocean, sunlight does not reach, and water temperatures often settle at levels slightly above freezing. Also the water pressure in the trench is so high that it would crush almost any creature (or man-made object).
Therefore this particular area of the sea, is more than a little inhospitable. However, in recent years it has been shown that living organisms do indeed exist and even thrive in this almost extraterrestrial environment.
The so-called bellota worms (Enteropneusta) were just one of the many examples of strange wildlife observed in the area known as Twin Peaks throughout the study. The purpose of scientists is to create an information base so that scholars and government agencies can understand how to manage and protect the pit and its fish.
According to NOAA, this beautiful shell mollusk is a "strange" discovery and, "surely", a new species of the Marianas grave. Despite numerous investigations carried out in the trench, 2,500 kilometers long and 72 meters wide, researchers still do not have a complete idea of their geology, habitats or inhabitants.
This hydromedusa was portrayed at a depth of almost 800 meters above a volcano, the first discovered in the Exclusive Economic Zone of the U.S.A. on many occasions, every time researchers go to the area to document the fauna, they make new finds.
Brótulas, a species of marine fish that presents an infrequent form of bulbous head, small eyes, great nasal orifices and a mouth in the inferior part, could be a new species, explain the responsible ones of NOAA.
The big bulge in form of a ball that has in its arm this Cheiraster sea star is the result of the infection caused by a parasitic cirripid. Their larvae enter the body of starfish and begin to thrive, taking advantage of the animal's nutrients and, sporadically, their reproductive systems.
The photograph offers an infrequent grouping of sea urchins and a crinoid, which inhabit rocky and elevated areas. According to the researchers, the crinoids are accustomed to living in these places to gain access to nutrition through the currents. However, this area is not common for sea urchins.
It is known as one of the infrequent ctenophores documented throughout the dive in the Ahyi underwater mountain of the Marianas grave whose maximum depth in the Challenger abyss is of about 10,800 meters.
This sea nut is also a group of bio-luminescent species, and they hunt their prey with the aid of its colorful structure and attractive tentacles. Admira this rare creature, is one of the most beautiful.
Octopus Dumbo has pretty little ears. This adorable animal also has gorgeous bulging eyes and puckered mouth. It lives under 3048 meters in the marine depths, they eat worms and crustaceans that they find in the depths. Unlike most octopuses, this species does not grind food but simply swallows its entire prey.
There are more than 40 species of ax fish. They all have ridiculously thin bodies, and many of them have shiny scales, too, which add up to the metallic appearance of the ax.
The Ax Fish has bioluminescent organs, and can alter its brightness depending on the amount of light filtered from above. It is a clever camouflage technique. Its dim light, produced by itself reduces its silhouettes, which makes the task difficult for its predators.
This snake fish has very long and curved teeth. The final part of the teeth is very close to your eyes! It looks terrifying, but they are small creatures only 30 centimeters long.
The ball fish is like a soccer ball, in its upper part they have a small protuberance that it uses like bait for its prey, when the prey approaches, it grabs it with its frightening jaws.
The sponge Ping-Pong tree is a carnivorous plant and grabs any little thing that passes over it, using little hair around your entire body. It inhabits between 2600 and 3000 meters deep
The goblin shark weighs around 200 kg, and is 4 meters long. Among all sharks, this species stands out for its unusual appearance characterized by a prominent snout. It is the only living member of the Mitsukurinidae family and is often called "living fossil" since its ancestry goes back to the Cretaceous period and retains primitive traits. Fortunately, you are unlikely to encounter this beast.
These sharks normally swim below 914 meters.
Light is a rare and precious thing at midnight of the ocean. Thus creatures of the ditch, like the fish Elf, have evolved unusual characteristics. How unusual? Well, for starters, this fish has a clear head. Scientists believe this feature may simply allow fish to pick up more light, which can give this strange animal a little more edge over its competition.
This fish was not discovered until 1939. However, this rare fish still holds many secrets, leaving scientists baffled about their life cycle and reproduction patterns.
The eel shark has the appearance of a snake and is very difficult to locate in the pit of the Marianas. They have the rounded body of an eel combined with the flattened head of a dinosaur. Perhaps this comparison is appropriate after all, because like many sharks, this species has roots 80 million years ago.
It has six rows of gills with frills that adorn your body, and handles more than 20 rows of teeth. They can grow up to two meters long. Of course we would not feel like finding it.
As ghosts of the abyss, Telescope Octopus floats in the deepest currents of Earth's oceans. Not anything in a horizontal position, but suspended vertically.
His body is so clear that it is almost transparent, and two protruding eyes protrude. These eyes provide a wider peripheral vision so that octopi can see predators and prey alike. Like something out of a science fiction movie, those eyes spin too, offering the creature a better way to see through the darkness of its deep refuge.
Jellyfish are fairly common sea animals, benthocodon, however, is an unusual type of jellyfish that prefers to live at a depth of more than 700 meters. They have a rounded top, called the bell, and are closed with about 1,500 tenuous red tentacles, which it uses to move through the water.
Although many types of jellyfish are transparent, benthocodon has an opaque reddish color on its bell. Scientists believe that this color may help mask the bioluminescent glow of the small animals that the jellyfish eats.
If a fish has the word "devil" in their name, it sure is going to be weird. The Sea Devil does not disappoint. With his deformed body, his terrible teeth and his cold glance, he can devour creatures bigger than him.
In a strange evolutionary spin of reproduction, males are fused with females. Its fins, teeth and eyes disappear, along with some internal organs, turning two individuals into one.
What remains of the male's body essentially becomes a sperm storage tank that helps fertilize the female's eggs when the time is right.
Officially called Osedax, it can consume hard bones like stones from some of the largest animals on Earth.
The zombie worm secretes acids to help access the internal contents of dead whale bones. He then uses symbiotic bacteria to convert proteins and bone fats into nutrients that serve as food.
The Munnopsis abyssalis possesses a body of 1-2 cm and long legs of 15 cm, found in depths of 900 to 3000 meters.
The Stauroteuthis Syrtensis or bright silly octopus measures up to 50cm and has been found at depths of up to 2500 meters.
The sea snout of black snout inhabits depths between 200 to 1692 meters, measure about 17 cm.
