Deep Sea Creatures
| Additional Resources Ocean Animals |
Well before the time of Percy Jackson and The Sea of Monsters, or Jules Verne writing about life 20000 Leagues Under the Sea, humans had an interest in the life forms that called the ocean home.
It's often the case that the realm of the unknown kicks the imagination into high gear, bringing to light hypotheses of monsters. In the age of tsunamis, there are also stories circulating about their carrying the monsters of the deep to coastal shores.
The last claim is a bit of a stretch. Researchers generally agree that tsunamis have little, if any, effect on deep open ocean waters, let alone carrying deep sea creatures to coastal areas.
While World War II ushered in the age of submarines, the post war era ushered in an age of technology that saw the creation of smaller ocean going vessels capable of documenting life on the ocean floor.
The ocean discoveries of the past fifty years run the gamut of ordinary to dramatic. On the ordinary side, for example, many of the deep-sea creatures documented, resemble the animals found near shore, such as limpets, anemone, octopus. squat lobsters and more.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, NOAA, Ocean Explorer, site provides the latest information regarding explorations of the deep blue sea. The web site provides both pictures and videos covering all the latest creature discoveries.
According to NOAA, 95% of the ocean remains unexplored, so the possibility of discovering dramatic sea monster-like creatures remains a possibility.
© 2011. Patricia A. Michaels.