A team of shipwreck explorers recently took a daring dive into the depths of the Red Sea and unexpectedly encountered a giant mysterious creature that left them utterly shocked.
Encountering a Mysterious Giant Creature
While exploring the shipwreck, researchers were astonished to discover the enigmatic creature. Image credit: Charlotteobserver
According to Charlotteobserver, the researchers from OceanX were conducting an ecological survey in a completely unexplored area of Neom in the northern Red Sea when they encountered the mysterious creature that left them astounded.
Initially, the research team discovered something “that looked like a bump,” said Mattie Rodrigue, the head of OceanX’s science program, in a YouTube video released on October 6.
“But that bump was about 100 meters long and 20 to 30 meters high,” Rodrigue added.
She and her team wanted to determine whether it was a shipwreck or just a giant rock during OceanX’s inaugural voyage in the Red Sea in October 2020.
Therefore, Rodrigue stated that the explorers sent a remotely operated vehicle (ROV) down to a depth of 853 meters to investigate after they saw a mysterious creature that left the entire team “speechless from shock.” Researchers believed this creature was larger than an average human.
“I will never forget what happened next for as long as I live. Suddenly, as we were looking at the bow of the shipwreck, that massive creature appeared, staring straight at the ROV and coiling its entire body around the bow,” Rodrigue shared.
Revealing the Identity of the Mysterious Creature, Giant but Not Really
Rodrigue’s research team initially thought it was a “giant squid.” However, the true identity of the mysterious creature was only confirmed a year later. Marine biologist Mike Vecchione from the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History stated that the creature seen by Rodrigue’s team was a purple-back flying squid.
The mysterious creature turned out to be a purple-back flying squid, thought to be giant but actually not. (Image credit: Charlotteobserver)
Despite its large size, this creature is not a “giant squid,” according to Vecchione. This zoologist noted that the largest known giant squid measures 13 meters in length, with eyes the size of dinner plates.
In contrast, the purple-back flying squid is much smaller. The purple-back flying squid that Rodrigue’s research team spotted was likely a “giant version” of this species.
