Nature | Almost Mythical Sea Creatures

From merfolk to megalodons, sea serpents to Scylla, scary sea creatures have long haunted fiction and film… but do some of them actually haunt our sea beds, too? Let’s meet a few and find out… are they FISH or FAIRYTALE?

Kraken

The Kraken is reported to be a huge (and we really mean HUGE) octopussy creature, that lurked off the coast of Norway and Greenland, sinking entire ships with a single swipe of a tentacle. The Kraken is taken from Norse mythology and its inspiration was probably the giant squid that lived in these waters and sometimes grew up to 13 metres in length. That’s quite a calamari dinner. So. Inspired by actual fish but ultimately fairytale, probably. 

Sea Serpents

These slithery sea-going beasts have appeared on maps and in fiction since the dawn of time, with the most well-known, Leviathan, appearing in the Hebrew Bible. But is there any truth in the myth? Could there really be giant snakes hiding in dark waters? Well, probably not, but we do know that oarfish can grow up to eight metres, with a face like a horse and a bright red crest all the way down its body. Sounds like a sea monster to us. Fish, for sure. 

Giant killer sharks

Sharks are pretty scary for sure, and pretty amazing, too. But where fish end and fiction begins is sometimes hard to tell. Clearly sharks are real but watch and of the ‘Meg’ or ‘Shark Attack’ films and you’d think giant shark, the size of your house were lurking around every pier just waiting to pounce. The inspiration behind these giant shark films is the Megalodon, a type of extinct mackerel shark that existed millions of years ago.  Estimated to have grown to up to 23 metres, even its teeth can be 18cm long. No wonder ‘megalodon’ means ‘big tooth’.  We’re voting ‘fish’ on this one. 

Mermaids (and mermen)

Half folk, half fish, these sirens of the sea were said to lure sailors to their death. Now, you’d think that there was little debate about how real merfolk actually are, but then ‘real mermaids’ began to turn up in the cabinets of 18th-century collectors of curios. Fishy, no? Well, quite fishy as it turns out but probably not real. They turned out to be the work of cryptozoologists who stitched together monkeys’ torsos and fish tails to make the sort of seaside souvenirs that send a chill through one’s spine. Fairytale. Thankfully. 

Kelpies

These equine shapeshifters live in Scottish lochs and rivers and take the form of huge, dark horses with manes wet from the waters. They’re said to lure children in to drown them, or shape-shift into young men to seduce women and lure them to their deaths, eviscerating them so that only their guts make it back to land. Brutal stuff. The truth is probably less dramatic; the Kelpies were simply a good story to stop kids straying too close to the water… and to stop young women having their heads turned by young men in swimming trunks.

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More magical sea things…

More from our October issue…

Six amazing sea creatures

The seas around the UK are home to creatures as wondrous as any found in more exotic waters

Long-snouted seahorse (Hippocampus guttulatus)

With its protruding spines, downward gaze and prehensile tail, this most beguiling fish looks like a shy, prehistoric ghost. Floating upright, it hangs motionless waiting for its prey to pass, which it then sucks up through its long snout. Found in seagrass habitats from Scotland to Dorset.

Moon jellyfish (Aurelia aurita)

Most often seen when masses, known as a ‘bloom’, are washed up on the beach. Which is a shame, as they look most beautiful floating in transparent clusters. Moon jellyfish can grow up to 40cm in diameter and have short hairy tentacles that hang from their dome like a fringe. They are mostly harmless, though may sting sensitive skin. 

Brittle star (Ophiothrix fragilis)

This elegant starfish has long slender arms which they can cleverly self-amputate if being attacked; the arms regrow. Brittle stars prefer to live in great gangs (called ‘aggregations’) on the sea bed, their arms raised to catch plankton; can number up to 1,500 per square metre. Usually in deep water but sometimes under boulders and in rockpools.

Snakelocks anemone (Anemonia viridis)

Unlike other anemones, Snakelocks anemone’s bright-green tentacles remain out all the time: all the better to sting and capture small fish. They can be found on the seabed, attached to large seaweeds, and in sunny rockpools, where their flowing tentacles with their purple tips sift through the passing currents.

Goose barnacle (Lepas anatifera) 

Attached to rocks and other objects by a long black penduncle and with a chalky white shell which opens to reveal spiky fronds, this unusual creature has an alien-like quality. 

Spiny spider crab (Maja squinado) 

Often disguised by seaweed and sponges that grow all over it, this large knobbly crustacean has long-jointed legs, small claws and spiky shell. It can be found in South and West England and its sustainable numbers mean it’s increasingly eaten in the UK, although most are exported to France and Spain.

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