This unusual creature is actually a large community of organisms called a Pyrosome. From the Washington Post: “For 48-year-old videographer Steve Hathaway, the Oct. 25 sighting near a small, volcanic island about 30 miles off New Zealand’s northernmost point put an end to a search that lasted more than a decade. “I’ve always wanted to see one,” Hathaway said in an interview Wednesday discussing the 26-foot-long pyrosome — a colony of tiny sea animals that link together into a free-floating mass. Their mysterious features and bioluminescent glow have caused some scientists to dub them the “bizarre unicorns of the sea. They reportedly feel “like an exquisitely soft feather boa.”” From Wikipedia: “Pyrosomes, genus Pyrosoma, are free-floating colonial tunicates that live usually in the upper layers of the open ocean in warm seas, although some may be found at greater depths. Pyrosomes are cylindrical or cone-shaped colonies made up of hundreds to thousands of individuals, known as zooids. Colonies range in size from less than one centimeter to several metres in length. They are commonly called "sea pickles." Of the 2 nicknames I prefer Unicorns of the Sea although I think Narwhals have first claim on the title. Video Credit: Steve Hathaway and Andrew Buttle filmed a worm-like sea creature off the coast of White Island in New Zealand on Oct. 25. (Steve Hathaway and Andrew Buttle via Caters News) . #Pyrosome #Zooids #ColonyOfZooids #OceanLife #UnusualCreatures #Unusual https://www.instagram.com/p/BqTEVDKh4kV/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=nzs7am5l5m0a
