Hello friends!

We’re the Ostmo family, and we love learning about countries and people. Our oldest daughter, Melaya, has tons of friends all around the world!

Melaya loves ocean wildlife and she recently learned more about deep sea creatures she found them so cool because they live in the most unique and deepest parts of the ocean. Some of them are weird and scary but Melaya thinks they are amazing. She has a lot of friends from all over the world and some of them like deep sea creatures just like her.

This Deep-Sea Creature That knows how to use light 

Melaya has a friend named Diego who lives in Cancun, Mexico. His favorite deep sea creature is the anglerfish, he found out about them in his Natural Sciences class in school. Anglerfish look extremely deadly and frightening. They are carnivorous and lure in prey with the light on their dorsal fin. 

Does that mean they can create light with their body? They can create light with an extended antenna on their head. They use it to attract fish swimming near them. They aren’t fast at swimming but their sharp and large teeth make them extremely dangerous for little fish. Diego’s mom works for a Deep sea fish research center, there are lots of different deep sea creatures there. Diego likes visiting them. His favorite is still the anglerfish.

What is your favorite deep sea creature?

The king of the sea: Six-Gill Shark 

Over 2,000 miles from Mexico in Aruba lives Rosa, a friend of Melaya. Rosa loves Six-gill sharks, they are her favorite deep sea creatures. Rosa said they are called six-gill sharks because they have six gills instead of the normal five. She likes them because they are the kings of the sea, they are scary and powerful. Although the six-gill shark looks kind of funny with those big eyes. They look like googly eyes, don’t you think?

An Immortal Jellyfish?!

Meanwhile, in Japan, Nami another of Melaya’s friends is watching a documentary about the immortal Jellyfish. Some jellyfish are translucent, which is another word for transparent. Nami thinks the immortal jellyfish are fascinating, and when Melaya asks her why she said it’s because the immortal Jellyfish are some of the oldest deep sea creatures in the world. They live for a very long time and they have been on earth since back when the dinosaurs were still alive! I guess that’s why they are called immortal jellyfish. 

What if Dracula would be a Deep Sea Creature?

Chris, another of Melaya’s friends lives in Australia and says he likes the Vampire Squid. Chris says he likes the Vampire Squid because they remind him of Dracula. He said they have long tentacles and they suck their prey into their mouth. 

Chris said Vampire Squid is a small squid that lives deep in the ocean. Chris tells Melaya that Vampire squids have big heads which makes them look like octopuses but the difference between a squid and an octopus is that a squid is a mollusk, more related to clams and snails. 

They typically have 8 arms, although some species can have as many as 50! Squids tend to be smaller than octopuses, but they are still considered large animals that can grow up to 2 meters in length. They also have big red glowy eyes which is why people call them Vampire squids. 

The longest fish in the sea: The Oarfish

In Hawaii lives Kalea, Kalea’s favorite deep sea creature is the Oarfish, a unique fish species that have the largest bones in the sea. The Oarfish may be responsible for many of the legendary sightings of sea monsters and sea serpents by ancient mariners and beachgoers. Kalea’s favorite thing about the Oarfish is its scaleless body. They are covered with silver to silvery blue skin and are topped with an ornate, red dorsal fin that resembles a decorative headdress. Kalea tells Melaya that it is the most interesting sea creature she has ever seen.

Another fascinating Deep Sea Creature

The sea cucumber which Luca in Madrid, Spain enjoys watching videos of, sea cucumber are invertebrates and he thinks their body looks funny, Sea cucumbers are soft-bodied sea animals that have a circle of five to twenty tentacles around the mouth. Some sea cucumbers have a thick, muscular body wall, but others are clear and jellylike. Most sea cucumbers look like thick worms or slugs, but some are U-shaped. Luca says that sea cucumbers are very interesting because they move around like worms on the sea floor, he has never seen one move outside of the water.

There are so many other deep sea creatures that Melaya hopes to see like hagfish, starfish, crabs, sperm whales, Coelacanth, and lanternfish.

Tell us in the comments what your deep sea creatures are! If you want to learn more about different sea creatures, make sure to download the activity pack. We have flashcards, a learning guide, handwriting sheets, and drawings pages all dedicated to various deep sea creatures!

Melaya loves chatting with kids from all over the world! If you want to teach Melaya about where you live or your favorite activities, please tell your mom or dad to use @learningtail on Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok to get in touch with us. 

Ciao friends, see you next time!