# Please help ID this sea creature! **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [July 6, 2004, 1:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-help-id-this-sea-creature/253777 "2004-07-06T13:05:03Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Dung\_Beetle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dung_beetle/32/7945_2.png) [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2004, 1:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-help-id-this-sea-creature/253777/1 "2004-07-06T13:05:03Z")
The kids and I were walking on the beach at Daytona this weekend at the edge of the water, when I saw what I thought was a bit of seaweed going out with the tide. Suddenly it turned and headed back toward the shore. It looked much like a short piece of black electrical tape, and moved by repeatedly touching its “head” and other end together, then straightening out. As we examined it more closely, we could see what looked like a slight fraying at the edges (legs? feelers?). The thing then shot into the underwater sand and vanished instantly, no digging, just pierced it like a needle, leaving behind a tiny round hole. The kids and I let out a hearty “Ewwww!” I spent the rest of the weekend freaking out whenever something touched me in the water. Tell me if you can, what was that nightmare beast? ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2004, 1:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-help-id-this-sea-creature/253777/2 "2004-07-06T13:11:58Z")
Wrong coast, but did it look something [like this](http://www.calacademy.org/research/izg/SFBay2K/Nereis%20vexillosa.htm)? ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2004, 1:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-help-id-this-sea-creature/253777/3 "2004-07-06T13:13:18Z")
[Another pic](http://www.nwmarinelife.com/htmlswimmers/n_vexillosa.html). ---
**Author:** ![Dung\_Beetle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dung_beetle/32/7945_2.png) [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2004, 1:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-help-id-this-sea-creature/253777/4 "2004-07-06T13:21:26Z")
Nope, wasn’t nearly as fuzzy or large, thank goodness. It was flat like a blade of grass. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2004, 1:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-help-id-this-sea-creature/253777/5 "2004-07-06T13:38:14Z")
[Pipefish](http://john.munchnet.com/fla/Pipe2.jpg)? Or maybe an eel of some kind? ---
**Author:** ![Dung\_Beetle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dung_beetle/32/7945_2.png) [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2004, 1:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-help-id-this-sea-creature/253777/6 "2004-07-06T13:51:12Z")
No, and again, thank goodness. I’d have stayed dry the rest of the weekend if I’d thought there was a chance I’d be swimming with one of those. ---
**Author:** ![Dung\_Beetle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dung_beetle/32/7945_2.png) [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2004, 8:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-help-id-this-sea-creature/253777/7 "2004-07-06T20:57:21Z")
bump ---
**Author:** ![Ranchoth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ranchoth/32/1066_2.png) [@Ranchoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ranchoth)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2004, 10:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-help-id-this-sea-creature/253777/8 "2004-07-06T22:45:51Z")
[An old one?](http://www.gswhs.grundy.k12.il.us/clubs/scholastic/cthulhu.jpg) Ranchoth (_ia! ia! fhtagn!_) ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2004, 11:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-help-id-this-sea-creature/253777/9 "2004-07-06T23:24:56Z")
[NO, a Deep One.](http://www.agonyagogo.com/deeponex.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![mangeorge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d78d45/32.png) [@mangeorge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mangeorge)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2004, 11:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-help-id-this-sea-creature/253777/10 "2004-07-06T23:36:20Z")
Sounds like a leech, but I don’t know if there are salt water leeches. I’ll look. Peace, mangeorge ---
**Author:** ![mangeorge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d78d45/32.png) [@mangeorge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mangeorge)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2004, 11:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-help-id-this-sea-creature/253777/11 "2004-07-06T23:50:43Z")
Google has about 11,900 pictures of [leeches](http://images.google.com/images?q=%22leech%22&btnG=Search&hl=en&lr=&ie=ISO-8859-1). Any of them look familiar? ---
**Author:** ![Dung\_Beetle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dung_beetle/32/7945_2.png) [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2004, 12:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-help-id-this-sea-creature/253777/12 "2004-07-07T12:20:16Z")
It could have very well been a leech. I think that’s what skeeved me out so badly! To see it shoot into the sand like that was to picture it shooting into _me_. :eek: ---
**Author:** ![TwoTrouts](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/a9adbd/32.png) [@TwoTrouts](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TwoTrouts)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2004, 1:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-help-id-this-sea-creature/253777/13 "2004-07-07T13:10:40Z")
I think you saw a nudibranch, commonly called a “Spanish Dancer”. It is a type of flatworm that swims by undulating through the water, seeming to touch its head and tail together as it goes. There are hundreds of species in all sorts of colors from around the world. [Link](http://scubaduba.com/gallery/nfbangs_dancer.html) to one photo. ---
**Author:** ![Philster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/13edae/32.png) [@Philster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Philster)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2004, 2:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-help-id-this-sea-creature/253777/14 "2004-07-07T14:11:40Z")
> [@Dung Beetle](#): > > It could have very well been a leech. I think that’s what skeeved me out so badly! To see it shoot into the sand like that was to picture it shooting into _me_. :eek: AND…they poop in the water! _RUN FOR YOU LIVES!_ (side note: Is ‘skeeved out’ universally recognized? I always thought that to be a local term. Just curious. I mean, I have always heard it, but thought it was a NE thing) ---
**Author:** ![Dung\_Beetle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dung_beetle/32/7945_2.png) [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2004, 2:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-help-id-this-sea-creature/253777/15 "2004-07-07T14:47:30Z")
I pee in the water to keep the sharks away. 😉 Re: skeeved I’m in the SE, but I guess I could have picked it up here. Seems that it would be universally understood in context. ---
**Author:** ![bouv](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bc8723/32.png) [@bouv](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bouv)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2004, 3:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-help-id-this-sea-creature/253777/16 "2004-07-07T15:38:43Z")
If a little worm or leech keeps you out of the water, how do you feel knowing [this guy](http://www.whozoo.org/Anlife2001/chelsy/clh_Bathynomus.htm) is swimming around there too. Just so you know, they can reach 18" long 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Dung\_Beetle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dung_beetle/32/7945_2.png) [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2004, 3:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-help-id-this-sea-creature/253777/17 "2004-07-07T15:50:33Z")
Well, I make the kids swim out a little further than I do, so if there’s anything in the water it’ll get them first. My daughter lost her glasses in the ocean this past weekend, and her idea for us to find them was to feel around on the ocean floor with our feet. Uh, yeah, kid, good luck with that. If I touched something like that in the water, I’d panic and drown. ---
**Author:** ![Lord\_Ashtar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ea924/32.png) [@Lord\_Ashtar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lord_Ashtar)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2004, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-help-id-this-sea-creature/253777/18 "2004-07-07T15:53:57Z")
Most of these pictures are making my skin crawl. Especially **Johnny LA’s** first one. Eww! :shudder: ---
**Author:** ![DocCathode](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/doccathode/32/18773_2.png) [@DocCathode](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DocCathode)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2004, 4:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-help-id-this-sea-creature/253777/19 "2004-07-07T16:43:27Z")
Bah. You think those are pelagic horrors? [The goblin shark](http://www.greengoblin.com/internal/corner/shark.html) [The viperfish](http://www.imagequest3d.com/cgi-bin/ImageFolio3/imageFolio.cgi?action=view&link=aquatic/chordata/osteichthyes&image=JNM00015.jpg&img=0&search=deepdea%21%20ZXC001&cat=aquatic&tt=&bool=or) Remember that no matter how brightly the sun is shining on the shore, not far out and not that deep there is eternal and limitless darkness. ---
**Author:** ![KP](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/a9adbd/32.png) [@KP](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KP)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2004, 4:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-help-id-this-sea-creature/253777/20 "2004-07-07T16:50:59Z")
> [@bouv](#): > > If a little worm or leech keeps you out of the water, how do you feel knowing [this guy](http://www.whozoo.org/Anlife2001/chelsy/clh_Bathynomus.htm) is swimming around there too. > > Just so you know, they can reach 18" long 😉 AW, you didn’t even mention the good part of that link: **Habitat:** Sea bottom (about 2000 feet) and _also some have colonized freshwater habitats_ **Status:** Not Threatened [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-help-id-this-sea-creature/253777.md?page=2)