A fisherman from New Zealand was left baffled when he caught
this transparent shrimp-like creature. The creature was said to have been swimming
near the surface of the ocean.
Stewart Fraser was fishing with sons Conaugh and Finn 43
miles north off the North Island's Karikari Peninsula when he spotted the
translucent 'shrimp' floating near the top of the water.
Mr Fraser said: 'I was in two minds whether to haul it in,
but curiosity got the better of me and I decided to take a closer look. 'It
felt scaly and was quite firm, almost jelly like, and you couldn't see anything
inside aside from this orange little blob inside it.
The photo baffled Mr Fraser and all of his fisherman
friends, who are still none more the wise as to what the creature could have
been.
Mr Fraser said: 'We have no idea what it could have been but
it was quite something and I'd never seen anything like it before.'
However, Deborah Cracknell, research lead from the National
Marine Aquarium in Plymouth, told MailOnline she believes the creature is a
Salpa maggiore (Salpa maxima).
Paul Cox, director of conservation and communication at the
National Marine Aquarium, said: 'Little is known about these salps, however,
they are often found in colder seas, with the most abundant concentration found
in the Southern Ocean.
'The salp is barrel-shaped and moves by contracting, pumping
water through its gelatinous body. It
strains the water through its internal feeding filters, feeding on
phytoplankton from the upper sunlit layer of the ocean. They have an
interesting life-cycle with alternate generations existing as solitary
individuals or groups forming long chains.
'In common with other defenceless animals that occupy open
water - jellies and hydroids for example - the translucence presumably provides
some protection from predation. Being see-through is a pretty good camouflage
in water.'
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