What lies beneath? Five strange creatures from the ocean

Viperfish. Photo / Getty Images

Te Papa is now home to two full-bodied colossal squid. The second rare sea creature was found by a fishing crew in Antarctica's Ross Sea over the summer. It was put on ice and brought to New Zealand, where it has been kept in a freezer at Te Papa for the past few weeks.

The ocean is home to some weird and wonderful creatures. Here are some of the strangest:

Pacific Viperfish

Jagged teeth like needles, sticking out at odd angles make the Pacific viperfish unable to close its mouth. Menacing as they may be, these creatures only grow to about 25 centimetres long. They troll the depths - 4,400 metres below the surface - luring prey with bioluminescent photophores on their bellies.

Giant tubeworms

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Giant tubeworms live at the edge of hydrothermal vents, tolerating high temperatures and toxic-chemical filled water. They are invertebrates and feed by using bacteria to indirectly obtain all materials they need for growth from molecules dissolved in water.

Wolffish

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These toothy predators feed on mollusks, shellfish and sea urchins. The Wolffish (or Sea Wolves) are bottom-feeders native to cold waters of the northern Atlantic and Pacific Oceans.

Stargazer

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These electric creatures (capable of delivering lethal shocks) bury themselves in the sand, watching their prey with eyes that sit on the top of their head.

Amphipod

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Garden-variety amphipods are usually tiny - under 2.5 centimetres. However, when you delve to the depths of the Pacific, they can grow up to 30 centimetres in length.

- nzherald.co.nz