Everyone is terrified of sharks and understandably so. However, sharks are not the only dangerous creatures that lurk under the world’s oceans.
There some scary, not-to-good-looking creatures at the bottom of the sea that will give you nightmares for weeks.
Trust me, you will not want to go snorkeling or deep-sea diving after watching our countdown of the 15 most dangerous Ocean creatures in the world.
GIANT MONKFISH
Monkfish! Goosefish! Headfish! Mother-in-law fish! Whatever you call these monsters in your part of the world, it’s ever apparent that we’re talking about some kind of fish! I have to say, I absolutely adore Monkfish! They have a fearsome, googly-eyed ugliness all their own and appear as little more than a face.
It’s like a giant ogre lost a battle with a huge amount of quicksand.
Monkfish attract prey with a small fishing rod above their mouth. When the rod lures smaller fish in close, the monkfish opens its terrifying mouth and chomps down.
The fish have two rows of very sharp teeth, and they’ll eat anything, including smaller monkfish. They can reach over 5 feet in length, but camouflage allows them to go unnoticed.
They even have some sort of beard on their chin, probably just some extra skin to break up their shape and improve the camouflage.
It should be noted that Monkfish aren’t strictly deep-sea fish, although the various species have wide ranges that end at quite a depth.
PUFFERFISH
Biologists think pufferfish, also known as blowfish, developed their famous “inflatability” because their slow, somewhat clumsy swimming style makes them vulnerable to predators.
In lieu of escape, pufferfish use their highly elastic stomachs and the ability to quickly ingest huge amounts of water and even air when necessary to turn themselves into a virtually inedible ball several times their normal size.
Some species also have spines on their skin to make them even less palatable. A predator that manages to snag a puffer before it inflates won’t feel lucky for long.
Almost all pufferfish contain tetrodotoxin, a substance that makes them foul tasting and often lethal to fish.
To humans, tetrodotoxin is deadly, up to 1,200 times more poisonous than cyanide. There is enough toxin in one pufferfish to kill 30 adult humans, and there is no known antidote. Amazingly, the meat of some pufferfish is considered a delicacy.
Called fugu in Japan, it is extremely expensive and only prepared by trained, licensed chefs who know that one bad cut means almost certain death for a customer. Let me call Uber eats to cancel my order right away!
