Looking at this deep-sea dweller, you will not immediately understand who he is. Almost colorless, completely transparent body, characteristic unhurried vertical swimming indicate that this is a jellyfish. But the appearance is deceiving - this is a real octopus, albeit a very unusual one.
Vitreledonella richardi or glass octopus- a unique representative of deep-sea or bottom octopuses, the only species in the Vitreledonellidae family.
The jelly-like body of this mollusk is almost transparent and, with the exception of some internal organs, is devoid of coloring pigments. All that can be seen through the glass-clear torso is the digestive system and an impressive torus-shaped brain. The latter, by the way, is so great for a reason: octopuses, and Vitreledonella richardi in particular, are the smartest invertebrates on our planet, their brain is able to analyze, adapt, remember and even learn.
The dimensions of the glass octopus are average: mantle - up to 11 cm, total body length - up to 45 cm, weight - up to 450 grams. The upper three pairs of tentacles are quite long and almost equal to each other, the fourth pair is almost half as long. The suckers are small, arranged in only one row (usually in three rows) and, moreover, rather weak, but he doesn’t need others: he hunts small prey. Taste buds are located on each of the eight tentacles, with their help the mollusk determines the suitability of a particular prey. The structure of the eyes in V. richardi is also very unusual; the eyes, located on long thin stalks, are widely spaced and always directed upwards.
Glass octopuses are found almost everywhere in tropical and subtropical waters with a relatively deep bottom (about 100 meters and deeper).
The vast majority of octopuses reproduce without direct sexual contact - by transferring to females a modified tentacle with sperm, a hectocotyl, separated from the body. Males of transparent octopuses fertilize females during direct contact. The female lays up to several hundred eggs, which she guards under her mantle. V. richardi newborns are only 2.2 mm long.
transparent sea cucumber
Source: ocean.si.edu
This strange sea creature crawls along the ocean floor and sucks up nutrient-rich sediments with its tentacles. Sea cucumbers move quite slowly, at about 2 centimeters per minute.
glass squid
Source: wikipedia.org
There are about 60 different species of glass squid that make up the Cranchiidae family. They spend most of their lives in partially sunlit shallow waters, where their transparency provides camouflage.
Jellyfish
Source: nationalgeographic.com
There are many different types of transparent or translucent jellyfish. In addition to being beautiful and elegant, these animals are dangerous. Because of their transparency, swimmers may not notice their stinging tentacles.
Big California stingray
Source: grindtv.com
The large California stingray or Raja binoculata is often found in shallow water. Representatives of the species grow to large sizes. Through their very pale skin, internal organs can be discerned when viewed from a fairly close distance.
Transparent crustacean phronima (Phronima)
Source: ocean.si.edu
This shrimp is most often tiny in size, as a rule, does not exceed 2.5 cm in length. But it is a real fierce beast. The transparent body allows the Phronima to blend into the surrounding water environment, so that its prey does not notice its waiting claws.
Cyanogaster
Source: nationalgeographic.com
This inhabitant of a tributary of the Amazon River was discovered just a few years ago. A night wanderer with a blue belly and one conical tooth in its mouth is only a few millimeters long.
Angelfish
Source: rebloggy.com
These ethereal creatures are actually a type of sea slug. They served as prototypes for two Pokémon: Manafi and Fiona.
Salamander from Barton Springs
Source: nationalgeographic.com
This lungless salamander lives in Barton Springs, a natural spring group in Austin, Texas. It is found nowhere else in the world, as it needs unpolluted fresh water to survive. The Barton Springs salamander is critically endangered.
Costa Rican tadpoles
Octopuses are amazing creatures. They amaze with their behavior, high intelligence and size. Therefore, today we will tell you about the most striking and unusual species of these sea creatures.
10 - Genus hapalochlaena
Blue Ring Octopus
The blue-ringed octopus lives in small tide-filled pools and coral reefs in the Pacific and Indian Oceans. Despite their modest size, these octopuses are considered among the deadliest in the world.
9 - Benthoctopus
Benthic octopus (Benthic octopus)
The benthic octopus is actually a deep-sea species that crawls along the bottom and often lives among the wrecks of sunken ships. Very little is known about this rare and shy creature, mainly that they live predominantly in the northeast Atlantic Ocean.
8 - Tremoctopus
Soaring octopus (Blanket Octopus)
This octopus soars thanks to its long transparent web, which stretches between its tentacles like large patches of flesh if the octopus feels in danger. He displays them in full size, appearing larger than he really is.
7 – Vulcanoctopus Hydrothermal
Hydrothermal Vent Octopus Octopus
This small octopus lives near hot hydrothermal vents. Its eyes are covered with thin, translucent skin that helps it see in deep waters.
6 Octopus Wolfi
Octopus-top
This octopus is considered the smallest in the world and it lives in the Indo-Pacific region. If you go looking for him, don't forget to grab a magnifying glass.
5 - Amphioctopus margins
Coconut Octopus (Coconut Octopus)
The coconut octopus is a medium-sized cephalopod that uses coconut shells as a ready-made dwelling. It can also be quite resourceful, using any cover to hide from predators.
4 - Enteroctopus Dofleini
Giant octopus (Giant Pacific Octopus)
The giant octopus, which lives in the North Pacific Ocean, is one of the largest cephalopods on the planet. They grow to a larger size and live longer than any other species of octopus. In fact, the record for this species was an individual 9.1 meters long.
3 - Thaumoctopus Mimicus
mimic octopus
The mimic octopus got its name because it can imitate other animals like fish and crabs! It lives exclusively in the nutrient-rich estuarine bays of Indonesia and Malaysia.
2 - Vitrelladonella Richardi
Transparent octopus (Transparent Octopus)
This incredible and very rare species of deep-sea
Perhaps the most unusual of these are the transparent creatures, whose bodies resemble ordinary glasses, allowing you to see everything through them.
As a rule, all animals with a transparent body use their superpower, bestowed by nature, to protect themselves from predators.
In their abode, due to the ability to be "invisible" they are extremely difficult to notice.
Here are the most amazing transparent creatures that live on our planet:
Transparent Jellyfish: Eared Aurelia (Aurelia aurita)
This jellyfish got its name due to its four large oral lobes, the shape of which resembles donkey ears.
The body of the jellyfish is translucent, and its dome resembles a flat umbrella. Along the edge of the "umbrella" are many tentacles, which are dotted with stinging cells. With their help, the jellyfish kills or paralyzes small animals.
Transparent Octopus: Glass Octopus (Vitreledonella richardi)
This octopus is one of the most mysterious creatures living at a depth of about 100 meters. Looking at it, it is difficult to understand that this is an octopus, since its almost colorless body and movement in the water are more like a jellyfish.
Through its transparent body, you can see the digestive system and a huge brain. It is worth noting that the glass octopus is the most intelligent invertebrate on Earth - its brain (like the brain of other octopuses) can analyze, remember and learn.
Transparent animals in the water: Mnemiopsis comb jelly (Mnemiopsis leidyi)
This creature lives in sea water, in particular in warm regions. In shape, it resembles a jellyfish, however, unlike it, the ctenophore moves with the help of rowing plates that are on its sides. In the light, his body shimmers with bright colors.
This animal has no eyes and no brain, and it moves very slowly. The comb jelly Mnemiopsis is considered a predator that is able to deprive animals larger than it of food.
Transparent shrimp: Far Eastern shrimp Palemonetes (Palaemonetes)
These shrimp have become very popular precisely because of the transparency of their body. Interestingly, the bodies are so transparent that the shrimp itself can see the food in its stomach.
In females, their greenish eggs are visible. Usually these shrimp are purchased for cleaning aquariums - they feed on various deposits and formations on the surface of the aquarium.
Marine transparent animals: Shellfish (Thecosomata)
These animals are some kind of sea snails that feed on plankton. They rake food with the help of slime nets and drag it back.
They live in the sea, and move using lift. Shellfish are food for animals such as some cetaceans, as well as sea angels (Clione limacina).
Transparent Creatures: Notothenioides (Notothenioidei)
Nototheniform fish are also called arctic icefish because they inhabit the waters of the Antarctic, but they can also be found in the waters of New Zealand and Australia.
Transparent nototheniform fish adapt well to the environment. They even have natural antifreeze in their blood, which prevents the formation of any ice crystals in the body.
Transparent amphipods (Hyperia Macrocephala)
These creatures were discovered during an expedition in the North Atlantic, when scientists managed to find several mysterious representatives of the animal world at once. They are also called Phronims and are among the strangest creatures ever found on Earth.
Large California stingray (Raja binoculata)
Such a slope lives at a depth of 3 to 800 meters, but more often no deeper than 100 meters. Its face is similar to a human's, which is why it has become a popular animal in many aquariums. Incredibly pale skin allows you to see the internal organs of the stingray, if of course you can get close to it.
Transparent salamander (Eurycea tridentifera)
Stream salamanders are a genus of tailed amphibians in the lungless salamander family. The peculiarity of these animals is that they do not need lungs - they breathe through the skin. In total, there are 27 species of brook salamanders.
Glass frogs (Centrolenidae)
These frogs are colored brownish green and seem to be no different from other frogs. But it is worth looking at her stomach and it becomes clear how this frog stands out.
The skin on the abdomen is so transparent that it resembles glass, which is why the animal received the name glass frog. Through the transparent abdomen, several internal organs can be seen, including the liver, heart, and gastrointestinal tract. In females, upon closer examination, even eggs can be seen.
Two-horned Indian glass catfish (Kryptopterus bicirrhis)
This freshwater animal lives in Southeast Asia (Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia). It has an elongated transparent body, the length of which does not exceed 15 cm.
It is worth noting that the double-whiskered Indian glass catfish is one of the most transparent vertebrates on the planet. Its organs are located next to the head, and with the help of a magnifying glass, you can see how the heart beats.
And if the light falls at a certain angle, then the fish takes on the color of the rainbow, but after death, their body becomes white.
Transparent jumping spider (Salticidae)
There are over 5,800 jumping spiders, making this the largest family of all spiders in the world. Jumping spiders have excellent eyesight and move very quickly.
These two qualities help spiders to hunt. This transparent spider was discovered in Ecuador. He stands out for his transparent head and piercing eyes.
Among animals capable of amazing camouflage, a separate place should be allocated to those that do not even need to hide. Why? But because these animals, insects and waterfowl are almost completely transparent. Usually the ability to merge with the outside world helps animals protect themselves when they have no teeth, no claws, no poison.
Greta Oto, or the glass butterfly
This butterfly lives in South America and is part of the region's most numerous butterfly species. The wings of a glass butterfly are almost transparent. The fact is that in the center of the wings there are no scales that reflect light. In addition to the ability to merge with the outside world, Greta Oto butterflies are poisonous because their eggs are laid on a poisonous plant, which the larvae and caterpillars feed on, accumulating poison in the body.
Transparent pharaonic ant
This type of ant only looks so bright and interesting in photographs. In fact, this is a common, very common type of insect that crawls around the yard, garden and house in almost the entire world. They are not, perhaps, only in the Arctic and Antarctica.
smallmouth macropinna
This fish is also called barrel-eye. Macropinna is not completely transparent, only the head is transparent, which acts as a windshield and improves visibility. Through the transparent dome of the fish's head, not only its strange eyes are visible, but also the brain. This interesting characteristic of the fish was unknown until recently because the transparent protective shell is damaged and fogged up when the fish rises to the surface from the depths.
turtle beetle
Charidotella sexpunctata, which is also called the "golden turtle" is not completely transparent, but it is protected by a transparent dome. This shell, officially called the cuticle, allows the beetle to change color and appear more intimidating to its enemies. In addition, turtle beetles have a number of patterns, the purpose of which is to attract members of the opposite sex. The transparent cuticle is a two-part shell, which is where the beetle gets its name from.
Common eel larvae
The common European eel lives in rivers and other bodies of water. These waterfowl change color several times during their existence, and not all of its variants are transparent. In fact, only the larvae are transparent. When growing up, they become brownish, acquiring a marsh hue. After the eel reaches the breeding season, its eyes become larger, the belly becomes white, and the sides become a silver tint.
transparent octopus
No longer a larva, but still far from an adult octopus, this baby reaches only two centimeters in width and a little more in length. It is not surprising that such a crumb needs protection and the ability to hide well from the eyes of predators. However, with the right lighting, these babies can be observed. Through the transparent body of an octopus, you can see all its internal organs and notice the bright spots that it uses either for intimidation or for camouflage.
Transparent folded frog
This frog belongs to the Jumper species, a subspecies of the Reed. Previously, scientists assumed that transparent fold-legged frogs became extinct, due to the fact that their numbers have declined sharply. These frogs live in the forests of the Republic of the Congo. In 2011, a scientific expedition managed not only to observe representatives of this species in the wild, but also to take some successful photographs.
Transparent Danaids
This butterfly belongs to the danaid subspecies and lives in South America. Part of her wings is transparent, and part is covered with reflective colored scales. The framing of the wings of this beauty is dark brown, which resembles her relative, the aforementioned Greta Otho, but the body is white with brown stripes, in contrast to the dark brown body of a glass butterfly.
Salpa major
This is a large and not quite familiar species of salps - transparent inhabitants of ocean waters belonging to chordates, or more precisely, to tunicates. These waterfowl live in all oceans, except for the cold waters of Antarctica and the Arctic Ocean. They gather in colonies and have the ability to glow when they swim near the surface of the water.
Immortal transparent jellyfish (Turritopsis nutricula)
This very deep-sea creature has several remarkable qualities, and the transparent body is not the most surprising of them. It is this jellyfish that lives in the Mediterranean Sea that is considered truly immortal. Of course, most jellyfish are partially or completely transparent, but don't be surprised that this one is a little more special.
glass frog
Representatives of this species at first glance are not much different from the rest of their relatives, but just look at their abdomen - and it becomes clear why they are called glass. The rest of the body of these frogs acquires a bright green color. Juveniles are distinguished by the fact that they live completely in the water and their whole body is slightly watery. There are over a hundred different species of glass frogs, and almost all of them are native to Ecuador.
Transparent tetras
Transparent, or glassy tetra - a small fish that lives in the tropical fresh waters of the South American continent. The body of the fish remains completely transparent throughout its life.
Body fish fry
This baby belongs to the family of ray-finned fish, whose fry remain transparent until a certain age, then their color, like sex, can change several times throughout their life. Body fish are very poisonous fish, however, with proper cleaning, processing and cooking, they can be eaten.
Costa Rican tadpoles
These tadpoles resemble glass frogs, however, their abdomen is transparent only at this stage of development, then the body becomes normal. By the way, the patterns on the stomach are not patterns, but very neatly folded intestines.
glass shrimp
There are at least three types of shrimp called glass shrimp. The genus Thalassinidea, or mole shrimp, live in deep sea crevices and are only half transparent because their body has a yellowish tinge. Representatives of the genus Palaemonetes are also translucent and are usually often found in aquariums. The genus Caprellidae is also known as the sea goat or skeleton shrimp, because the transparent body of this crustacean consists of three parts and looks as if there really is a skeleton in the center.
transparent flounder
The larvae of some species of right-handed flounder are completely transparent. In other species, a few spots appear on the side, and some are translucent, with a silvery or yellowish tinge.
Baby snail
This baby is the baby of the largest European snail. From its transparent eggs, the hatchling hatches completely transparent, at the age of a week its shell begins to acquire a light brown hue.
Young angler
These fish are also called sea devils. Their eggs, larvae and young are round and completely transparent. As they mature, they begin to change shape and take on hue and growths, as well as their creepy jaws. Who would have thought that this cute baby with a photo that looks like a cartoon character can turn into a real deep-sea monster!
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