If you needed further proof that the ocean is a strange place with even stranger creatures, here it is. Researchers from the Nautilus team poking around in Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument, the largest protected conservation area in the United States, found themselves at a loss to describe what they were looking at. As it turned out, it was something called a gulper eel—sometimes called a pelican eel, for obvious reasons.
Gulper eels are a strange cross between a pelican and an eel. With an enormous pouch that’s used to scoop up prey and make it look bigger than it really is, the gulper eel is a rare sight for humans. While eel might be in the name, it’s actually a fish. This one, believe it or not, is a juvenile. Adults can grow up to three feet in length.
