Why is this animal unusual?
It’s neither a squid nor an octopus. The vampire squid is the last survivor of its own separate group, with features of both and a few that are all its own.
Why does it look like that?
Eight arms joined by a dark, cape-like web, two fins that look like ears and enormous eyes – proportionally among the largest of any animal.
Strangest biological feature
It can breathe where almost nothing else can. It lives in a layer of the ocean with so little oxygen that most animals would suffocate, which also means very few predators come looking.
Why is it strange?
When scared, it pulls its cloak up over its head and turns itself inside out, showing rows of spikes. They look fierce. They’re actually soft.
Interesting behavioral facts
It trails two long sticky threads through the water to catch falling crumbs, then scrapes them off, rolls them into balls with mucus and eats them. A deep-sea vampire that makes snowballs.
Records held
Probably the best name in all of biology.
