What the Heck Is This?

News
By Robert Roy Britt
published

Not goofing around today — this one is tough. I'll be surprised if anyone gets it without cheating. So make your guess before reading on…

It's a giant jellyfish unlike most you might ever have seen. Instead of long tentacles, this creature has fleshy arms that capture food. See the full image below.

This jelly can be as big as a washing machine.

This giant red-hued jellyfish called Tiburonia granrojo was described by American and Japanese researchers in 2003. It grows up to 3.3 feet (1 meter) in diameter and lives at depths of 2,000 to 4,800 feet (650 to 1,500 meters) in the ocean. First seen during submarine dives in 1993, the jellyfish is distinct in that it uses four to seven fleshy arms to capture food, rather than fine tentacles like other jellyfish. (Image credit: NOAA/Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute)

Got a strange or interesting photo related to science, nature or technology? What the Heck, send it to meand maybe I'll use it. And you follow me on Twitteror Facebook.

Robert Roy Britt
Robert Roy Britt

Robert is an independent health and science journalist and writer based in Phoenix, Arizona. He is a former editor-in-chief of Live Science with over 20 years of experience as a reporter and editor. He has worked on websites such as Space.com and Tom's Guide, and is a contributor on Medium, covering how we age and how to optimize the mind and body through time. He has a journalism degree from Humboldt State University in California.