Weird Animals

[Dirk]

This has got to be one of the strangest creatures I've ever seen......

View: https://youtu.be/rRej1VKDgcE

I give you the Feather Starfish.
Mesmerising ain't it?

 

[swee'pea99]

That is proper weird

 

[raleighnut]

Still think these are the weirdest,

View: https://youtu.be/QNoQvjlmGdk

 

[twentysix by twentyfive]

Crumbs - underwater feathers propulsion. Whatever next.

Known to science apparently https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crinoid

 

[Bazzer]

The weirdest I have seen was one these in the Southern Red Sea on a night dive last year. My buddy and I watched one for about 5 minutes on an over hanging reef as it hunted. And when it caught its prey it was an eye popping moment.

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aMorvRRbZ5E

 

[Drago]

The one eyed bed snake.

 

[Globalti]

Is that related to the mattress mamba?

 

[Profpointy]

Still think these are the weirdest,

View: https://youtu.be/QNoQvjlmGdk

I have actually seen one of those in the wild. One of my mates was having a dip in a river when I saw this shadow swimming towards him. I jumped up pointing and he nearly jumped out of his skin when he saw what appeared to be a giant eel which swam between his legs and disappear off. I think we were lucky to see it, albeit fleetingly. Also saw a couple of Exhidnas, the other egg laying mammal, which look like hedgehogs but are utterly unrelated

 

[PeteXXX]

Tardigrades...
I did a thread about them a while back.
Lovely things!

 

[Salar]

We get a lot of lampreys in our west Wales rivers.

Ugly but fascinating creatures, a protected species in most areas which in the past you could eat.

I had one stick itself to my waders once when fishing the Wye, gave me the fright of my life, they grow up to well over a metre long.

 

[Salar]

Me and a few of my fishing mates have had the frights of our lives with these things, as well as one sticking to me they also swim around your legs, creepy and very scary.

The one that got stuck to me was only approx 18" long, they adhere by suction, they then try to bite and suck out your blood.

I got it off before it started to bite, but it took some repeated pulling and the use of a landing net. As they are so slippy you can't get a proper grip on them. Strange thing, but that is nature.

Also ruined my waders which needed repairing.

 

[Salar]

Check out Jeremy Wade "River Monsters" He allowed one to bite him.

There was a bit of a mini "Jaws" panic a few years ago in the UK wild swimming fraternity about lampreys aka "The vampire fish"