Seas and oceans occupy more than half the area of our planet, but they are still shrouded in mysteries for humanity. We strive to conquer space and are looking for extraterrestrial civilizations, but at the same time, only 5% of the world's oceans have been explored by humans. But this data is enough to be horrified by what creatures live deep underwater, where sunlight does not penetrate.
1. Common chauliod (Chauliodus sloani)
The Chauliod family includes 6 species of deep-sea fish, but the most common of them is the common hauliod. These fish live in almost all waters of the world's oceans, with the only exceptions being the cold waters of the northern seas and the Arctic Ocean.
Chauliodas got their name from the Greek words “chaulios” - open mouth, and “odous” - tooth. Indeed, these relatively small fish (about 30 cm in length) have teeth that can grow up to 5 centimeters, which is why their mouth never closes, creating a creepy grin. Sometimes these fish are called sea vipers.
Howliods live at depths from 100 to 4000 meters. At night they prefer to rise closer to the surface of the water, and during the day they descend into the very abyss of the ocean. Thus, during the day, fish make huge migrations of several kilometers. With the help of special photophores located on the hauliod's body, they can communicate with each other in the dark.
On the dorsal fin of the viper fish there is one large photophore, with which it lures its prey directly to its mouth. After which, with a sharp bite of needle-sharp teeth, the hauliods paralyze the prey, leaving it no chance of salvation. The diet mainly includes small fish and crustaceans. According to unreliable data, some individuals of hauliods can live up to 30 years or more.
2. Long-horned sabertooth (Anoplogaster cornuta)
The longhorned sabertooth is another fearsome deep-sea predatory fish that lives in all four oceans. Although the saber tooth looks like a monster, it grows to a very modest size (about 15 centimeters in length). The head of the fish with a large mouth occupies almost half the length of the body.
The long-horned sabertooth got its name due to its long and sharp lower fangs, which are the largest in relation to body length among all fish known to science. The terrifying appearance of the sabertooth has earned it the unofficial name “monster fish.”
Adults can vary in color from dark brown to black. The younger representatives look completely different. They are light gray in color and have long spines on their heads. The sabertooth is one of the deepest-sea fish in the world. in rare cases they descend to a depth of 5 kilometers or more. The pressure at these depths is enormous, and the water temperature is about zero. There is catastrophically little food here, so these predators hunt for the first thing that gets in their way.
3. Dragonfish (Grammatostomias flagellibarba)
The size of the deep-sea dragon fish absolutely does not fit with its ferocity. These predators, which reach a length of no more than 15 centimeters, can eat prey two or even three times its size. Dragon fish live in tropical zones of the World Ocean at depths of up to 2000 meters. The fish has a large head and a mouth equipped with many sharp teeth. Like the Howlyod, the dragonfish has its own bait for prey, which is a long whisker with a photophore at the end, located on the fish's chin. The hunting principle is the same as for all deep-sea individuals. Using a photophore, the predator lures the victim to the closest possible distance, and then with a sharp movement inflicts a fatal bite.
4. Deep sea anglerfish (Lophius piscatorius)
The deep-sea anglerfish is rightfully the ugliest fish in existence. There are about 200 species of anglerfish, some of which can grow up to 1.5 meters and weigh 30 kilograms. Because of its creepy appearance and bad character, this fish was nicknamed the monkfish. Deep-sea anglerfish live everywhere at depths from 500 to 3000 meters. The fish has a dark brown color, a large flat head with many spines. The devil's huge mouth is studded with sharp and long teeth curved inward.
Deep-sea anglerfish have pronounced sexual dimorphism. Females are tens of times larger than males and are predators. Females have a rod with a fluorescent appendage at the end to attract fish. Most Anglerfish spend time on the seabed, burying themselves in sand and silt. Due to its huge mouth, this fish can completely swallow prey that is twice its size. That is, hypothetically, a large individual anglerfish could eat a person; Fortunately, there have never been such cases in history.
5. Bagworm (Saccopharyngiformes)
Probably the strangest inhabitant of the deep sea can be called the bagmouth or, as it is also called, the pelican-shaped largemouth. Due to its abnormally huge mouth with a bag and a tiny skull in relation to the length of the body, the bagmouth looks more like some kind of alien creature. Some individuals can reach two meters in length.
In fact, bagmouths belong to the class of ray-finned fish, but these monsters do not have too many similarities with the cute fish that live in warm sea backwaters. Scientists believe that appearance These creatures changed many thousands of years ago due to their deep-sea lifestyle. Bagmouths have no gill rays, ribs, scales or fins, and the body is oblong with a luminous appendage on the tail. If it were not for the large mouth, the bagmouth could easily be confused with an eel.
Bagworms live at depths from 2000 to 5000 meters in three world oceans, except the Arctic Ocean. Since there is very little food at such depths, bagmouths have adapted to long breaks in eating, which can last more than one month. These fish feed on crustaceans and other deep-sea brethren, mainly swallowing their prey whole.
6. Giant squid (Architeuthis dux)
The elusive giant squid, known to science as Architeuthis dux, is the world's largest mollusc and is thought to reach a length of 18 meters and weigh half a ton. To date, a live giant squid has never been captured by humans. Until 2004, there were no documented sightings of live giant squid at all, and general idea These mysterious creatures were known only from the remains washed ashore or caught in fishermen’s nets. Architeuthis live at depths of up to 1 kilometer in all oceans. In addition to their gigantic size, these creatures have the largest eyes among living creatures (up to 30 centimeters in diameter).
So in 1887, the largest specimen in history, 17.4 meters long, washed up on the shores of New Zealand. In the next century, only two large dead representatives of the giant squid were discovered - 9.2 and 8.6 meters. In 2006, Japanese scientist Tsunami Kubodera managed to capture on camera a living female 7 meters long in her natural habitat at a depth of 600 meters. The squid was lured to the surface by a small bait squid, but an attempt to bring a live specimen on board the vessel was unsuccessful - the squid died from multiple injuries.
Giant squids are dangerous predators, and their only natural enemy is adult sperm whales. There are at least two described cases of fight between squid and sperm whale. In the first, the sperm whale won, but soon died, suffocated by the giant tentacles of the mollusk. The second battle took place off the coast South Africa, then the giant squid fought with the baby sperm whale, and after an hour and a half fight, he still killed the whale.
7. Giant isopod (Bathynomus giganteus)
The giant isopod, known to science as Bathynomus giganteus, is the largest species of crustacean. The average size of a deep-sea isopod ranges from 30 centimeters, but the largest recorded specimen weighed 2 kilograms and was 75 centimeters long. In appearance, giant isopods are similar to woodlice, and like the giant squid, they are a consequence of deep-sea gigantism. These crayfish live at a depth of 200 to 2500 meters, preferring to bury themselves in silt.
The body of these creepy creatures is covered with hard plates that act as a shell. In case of danger, crayfish can curl into a ball and become inaccessible to predators. By the way, isopods are also predators and can feast on a few small deep-sea fish and sea cucumbers. Powerful jaws and durable armor make the isopod a dangerous opponent. Although giant crayfish love to feast on live food, they often have to eat the remains of shark prey that fall from the upper layers of the ocean.
8. Latimeria chalumnae
The coelacanth, or coelacanth, is a large deep-sea fish whose discovery in 1938 became one of the most important zoological discoveries of the 20th century. Despite its unattractive appearance, this fish is notable for the fact that for 400 million years it has not changed its appearance and body structure. In fact, this unique relict fish is one of the oldest living creatures on planet Earth, which existed long before the appearance of dinosaurs.
Coelacanth lives at a depth of up to 700 meters in the waters of the Indian Ocean. The length of the fish can reach 1.8 meters and weigh more than 100 kilograms, and the body has a beautiful blue tint. Since coelacanth is very slow, it prefers to hunt at great depths, where there is no competition with faster predators. These fish can swim backwards or belly up. Despite the fact that the meat of the coelcanth is inedible, it is often the target of poaching among local residents. Currently, the ancient fish is in danger of extinction.
9. Goblin shark (Mitsukurina owstoni)
The deep sea goblin shark, or goblin shark as it is also called, is the most poorly studied shark to date. This species lives in the Atlantic and Indian Oceans at depths of up to 1300 meters. The largest specimen was 3.8 meters long and weighed about 200 kilograms.
The goblin shark got its name due to its eerie appearance. Mitsekurina has movable jaws that move outward when bitten. The goblin shark was first accidentally caught by fishermen in 1898, and since then 40 more specimens of this fish have been caught.
10. Hell Vampire (Vampyroteuthis infernalis)
Another relic representative sea abyss is a one-of-a-kind detritivorous cephalopod that bears an external resemblance to both squid and octopus. The hellish vampire got its unusual name thanks to its red body and eyes, which, however, depending on the lighting, can be blue. Despite their terrifying appearance, these strange creatures grow to only 30 centimeters and, unlike other cephalopods, eat exclusively plankton.
The body of the hellish vampire is covered with luminous photophores, which create bright flashes of light that scare away enemies. In case of exceptional danger, these small mollusks turn their tentacles along the body, becoming like a ball with spikes. Hellish vampires live at depths of up to 900 meters, and can thrive in water with an oxygen level of 3% or lower, critical for other animals.
To the question What kind of fish swallowed and did not chew Jonah? given by the author Cyrus the best answer is Keith (Jon. 2:1, Matt. 12:40). The Hebrew names tannin and another - leviathan do not express the concept of a whale in the sense that it is understood in zoology, but generally mean an unusually large, monstrous sea animal. By the word whale that swallowed Jonah, many naturalists mean a shark, a large predatory fish , often found in the waters of the Mediterranean Sea - to confirm which they provide the following evidence: a) sharks during storms usually follow ships, while whales, as peaceful and cowardly animals, hide in the depths of the sea at the sight of danger; b) the larynx and stomach of sharks are capable of great expansion and they often swallow whole people alive, while the whale, mainly found in the northern seas, has completely opposite properties: its throat and stomach are very tight, and it is generally content with small sea animals. And the very Greek word Kytos, with which LXX interpreters translated the Hebrew word, in ancient times served as a general name for large sea fish and animals. However, nothing is impossible for the omnipotence of God. Etc. By the will of God, Jonah could miraculously be swallowed up by a whale, just as miraculously Jonah could have stayed in the belly of the whale for three days and three nights, and then miraculously been thrown out of its womb alive and damaged in the image of the three-day burial and resurrection of Christ the Savior. The Holy Church has been testifying to this for more than 1,500 years, calling this creature that swallowed Jonah a “beast of the water.” So, for example, in the irmos of the 6th canon of the Friday canon at Matins, tone 8, it says: “a water beast in the womb, the hand of Jonah outstretched in the shape of a cross, foreshadowing the saving passion in reality.” In the 6th canon of the morning canon, on Tuesday, tone 5, it is said: “As thou hast delivered the prophet from the beast, O Lord, and raise me up from the depths of uncontrollable passions, I pray.” Science tells us that there are different breeds of whales. For example, there is a genus of whales that have 44 teeth in the lower jaw and reach 60-65 feet in length. But they have a very small throat. This probably gave rise to the claim that Jonah could not have been swallowed up by a whale. There is another type of whale called the "bottle-nosed" or "beaked" whale. This is a small whale, up to 30 feet long. Although he is small, he has a rather large throat and could easily swallow a person, but the prophet could not be swallowed up by him because he chews food and has teeth. There are whales that do not have teeth, but are equipped with “whalebone”. Among this type of whale, there are whales called "Fin-Buck". These whales can be up to 88 feet long. The stomach of such a whale has from 4 to 6 chambers or compartments, and a small group of people could easily fit in any of them. Whales of this genus breathe air and have an air reserve chamber in their head, which is an extension of the nasal cavities. Before swallowing an object that is too large, the Fin-Buck whale pushes it into this chamber. If an object is too large in the head of this whale, it swims to the nearest land, lies down in shallow waters and throws away the burden. Scientist Dr. Ranson Harvey testifies that his friend, weighing 200 pounds, crawled from the mouth of a dead whale into this air chamber. The same scientist points out that a dog that fell overboard a whaling vessel was found alive in the whale’s head 6 days later. From what has been said, it is clear that Jonah could have stayed in the “belly,” that is, in the air chamber of such a whale for 3 days and 3 nights and remained alive. The space in this chamber is 686 cubic feet. So from scientific data we can see that Jonah could have been swallowed up by a whale. But the biblical word "dag" refers to "big fish." From this we can conclude that Jonah was indeed swallowed up by a sea creature - a large fish. In this case, you should point out the fish called "whale shark" or "bone shark".
Answer from 22 answers[guru]
Hello! Here is a selection of topics with answers to your question: What kind of fish swallowed and did not chew Jonah?
Answer from self-preservation[guru]
It was a miracle Yudo-fish-whale! By the way, just the other day I heard on TV that modern scientists have fully confirmed the authenticity of this case! A whale does not chew, it can swallow a person, but it is a large object and does not fall into the stomach, but into some kind of air cushion inside the whale, and a person can live there as long as he has enough oxygen - about a week! And then the whale can reflexively regurgitate it.
Answer from Neta[guru]
Science tells us that there are different breeds of whales. For example, there is a genus of whales that have 44 teeth in the lower jaw and reach 60-65 feet in length. But they have a very small throat. This probably gave rise to the claim that Jonah could not have been swallowed up by a whale.
There is another type of whale called the "bottle-nosed" or "beaked" whale. This is a small whale, up to 30 feet long. Although he is small, he has a rather large throat and could easily swallow a person, but the prophet could not be swallowed up by him because he chews food and has teeth.
There are whales that do not have teeth, but are equipped with “whalebone”. Among this type of whale, there are whales called "Fin-Buck". These whales can be up to 88 feet long. The stomach of such a whale has from 4 to 6 chambers or compartments, and a small group of people could easily fit in any of them. Whales of this genus breathe air and have an air reserve chamber in their head, which is an extension of the nasal cavities. Before swallowing an object that is too large, the Fin-Buck whale pushes it into this chamber. If an object is too large in the head of this whale, it swims to the nearest land, lies down in shallow waters and throws away the burden.
Scientist Dr. Ranson Harvey testifies that his 200-pound buddy crawled from the mouth of a dead whale into this air chamber. The same scientist points out that a dog that fell overboard a whaling vessel was found alive in the whale’s head 6 days later. From what has been said, it is clear that Jonah could have stayed in the “belly,” that is, in the air chamber of such a whale for 3 days and 3 nights and remained alive. The space in this chamber is 686 cubic feet. So from scientific data we can see that Jonah could have been swallowed up by a whale.
Frank Bullen, the famous author of the work: “The Voyage of the Sperm Whale,” found that the sperm whale (one of the whale species) often, when it dies, vomits the contents of its stomach.
But the biblical word "dag" refers to "big fish." From this we can conclude that Jonah was indeed swallowed up by a sea creature - a large fish. In this case, you should point out the fish called "whale shark" or "bone shark".
The "whale shark" gets its name from the fact that it has no teeth. The whale shark reaches 70 feet in length and filters food through large plates (baleen) in its mouth. This shark has a stomach large enough to fit a human.
Then it is not without interest to recall the report in the Literary Digest that a sailor was swallowed up by a whale shark. After 48 hours (i.e., after two days), the shark was killed. When the shark whale was opened, what was the surprise of all those present when they found a sailor, swallowed up by this beast, alive, but only in an unconscious state. Moreover, the sailor did not have any consequences of his stay in the belly of the whale shark, except for the loss of hair and several blisters on the skin. Then the sailor said that only fear did not give him peace, living in the belly of a whale. As soon as he regained consciousness and realized where he was, he immediately lost consciousness again.
Recently, writes Fr. I.S., -in the Hawaiian Islands, Japanese fishermen killed a great white shark. A complete human skeleton was found in her stomach. It turned out that he was a soldier, included in the list of deserters, wearing clothes of the Sev type. -Am. Army.
So, we see that Jonah could have been swallowed up by a large fish even without violating the natural laws of nature. All “absurdities” and “contradictions” disappear. The Word of God is true and immutable; it can never be in conflict with true science. This was established by the father of Russian science, Lomonosov.
The brilliant scientist Pascal said: “The last step of reason is to recognize the existence of many such things that go beyond the limits of our knowledge, and if reason does not come to this knowledge, then it is a very weak reason.”
Answer from I-beam[guru]
I wonder if whales live in the Red and Mediterranean seas. Otherwise, how did the author know about such a miracle “fish” in the first century?
Answer from Poke your head in[expert]
Sperm whale.
Answer from ALDIBEKOV Kanat (V miru - Abbat)[guru]
Oh, these fantastic stories of the authors who created " Holy Bible"And there are unusually naive people who not only blindly believe that the WHALE swallowed Jonah, but also those who would certainly believe that Jonah swallowed the whale, if only the “sacred dove” took it into his head to whisper such words to one of the prophets.. . :)))
Answer from Vitaly Bezverkhy[guru]
Most likely a sperm whale (at that time this species was not discovered or named). This was given by God to admonish the prophet, since he did not want to go to the Ninevites. The three-day stay of Jonah in the belly of the whale (sperm whale) prophesied about the three-day stay of Christ in the tomb before the Resurrection.
Answer from Dunno[guru]
There were such whales, scientifically proven.
Answer from StepanFilatoff[guru]
Whales do not chew, but filter plankton.
In the widely branched water system of the Amazon, arapaima grows to gigantic sizes. This ancient giant seems clumsy and sluggish. But, once hooked, he shows his temperament to the fullest.
My first encounter with this mystical fish occurred six years ago. I stood in front of a huge aquarium at the Natural History Museum of the Amazon in Manaus, Brazil, with my nose pressed against the thick glass: three giant fish, three arapaima weighing 50 kg each, hovered in the clear water. I watched their slow movements with fascination. Their eyes on a small, shell-covered head, in turn, carefully examined me. Who is actually considering whom? For a whole hour I stood hypnotized in front of the aquarium. Then I could not even think that I would ever be able to catch such a prehistoric giant. It was only seven years later that I had the opportunity to travel to Brazil again to fulfill this dream. But the extremely low water level dashed my hopes. The story of this trip is short: I didn’t catch anything. Only a year later I was able to catch my first arapaima, but not in Brazil, but in Thailand. This ancient fish is bred there in many lakes and ponds. But this did not create the atmosphere of real fishing. And yet I felt some semblance of what I would have experienced in the homeland of the Arapaima.
On the second try
Last year I had the opportunity to hunt the freshwater giants of the Amazon for the second time. I went to Brazil with Michel Dekker, the organizer of fishing in the Amazon. Our destination was the island of Mexicona in the Amazon delta. There should still be arapaima there in fairly large quantities. Despite the long journey, on the very first morning we went to a promising fishing spot. We drove along an intricate system of canals with bays and flooded fields. Once we scared a huge fish in shallow water, which took flight with a loud noise. Half an hour later we were almost at our goal. The noisy outboard motor has been replaced with an electric one. Later they walked only by oars. The two other boats that were sailing with us fell behind. There was calm. Soon a dull splash was heard - it was an arapaima that had swallowed air, and no one else. Several more fish made their presence known in the same way. Then we saw in the distance an arapaima jump out of the water. Our companion Gerard, a traveler from France, a few moments later hooked the first giant. We haven’t had time to mount the gear yet, but we watched from the side what obviously still lies ahead.
Arapaima jumps like crazy.
Cardiopalmus
But soon our floats were already swinging on the water of the Amazon. The bait was small armored catfish. A large arapaima surfaced right in front of the floats. Our hearts began to beat faster. I heard a scream - it was Michel who spotted a giant fish, which immediately dragged the tackle into the thick algae. Luckily, we were able to free the line. And the fishing began... Again and again the giant fish jumped out of the water. She shook her head wildly, then ran away. Finally, the first arapaima weighing 20 kg lies in our boat. A size 7/0 circle hook holds well in the corner of a fish's mouth.
Meanwhile, many large fish revealed themselves with loud splashes. I was counting on the fact that at some point my float would dive. But it happened again with Michel's float. This time, after just a few seconds, the fight ended in tears. The braided line with a breaking load of 32.5 kg broke like sewing thread. I looked at Michel’s surprised face, but out of the corner of my eye I saw my float disappear under the water. The line tightened, I began to wait for the fish to hook itself with a circle hook. Arapaima quickly ran away. Suddenly the line sagged and the fish left. Almost at the same time, the same thing happened to Michel. But that is not all. Within seconds we lost the next three fish. Each time the hook jumped out of the arapaima's mouth. We caught one fish, lost five - a bad result. But we will still have a chance - at least we hope so.
IN Once again the giant fish runs away.
Lost again
At noon, apparently, we were not the only ones who had a pause. And there was no activity observed in the water. Only after lunch everything started again, hunting arapaima were visible everywhere. Not much time passed, and the float dived. And again on Michel’s rod. The fish did not emerge from the water, but made a swift dash. This must be a real giant. Suddenly the arapaima changed direction and quickly turned back. A powerful whirlpool formed right in front of the boat, and again the hook jumped out of the fish’s mouth. So I changed the circle hook to a #10/0 Owner hook in hopes that it would work better. Soon I pulled out two arapaima one after another. One of them turned out to be a magnificent red male weighing 30 kg. My first wild arapaima. Not a monster, like in Thailand, but a free-living arapaima from the Amazon. The first fishing day ended, we can consider it, successfully, even if together we lost more fish than we caught.
Read the continuation in the next article by Arnut Terluv.