Strange Walking Sea Creature Video

I found this on Liveleak. Check it out!

linky linky

What is it? Some of the comments on the video suggests that it was a turtle or a cousin to the monkfish. I don't think turtles could live that deep underwater and the sea going ones I've seen have flippers. Anybody have a clue?


[edit on 5/15/2007 by Cowboy Clint]

It looks like a type of Frog Fish. Just type frog fish into google images and you get 265,000 results, most of which are fish with legs. Tons of different colors and patterns but in black and white they all look like the one in your video.

At first it looks related to the turtle,with the mouth of a catfish, but then you see that it appears to have a spine and little black black eyes. It obviously has intelligence because it hides or hunkers down when the shark is approaching. I hope someone knows what this is because I would love to know. It kind of looks like a sand dabber only huge.

The first part of the video I had no idea what it was, it didn't look like a fish, more like a blob with weird legs. But when it began facing the camera its blatantly obvious that its a form of frog fish or stone fish. Some types of those fish walk with their fins.

Now, what I wonder is whats that weird eel/snake thing that starts moving across the bottom right corner of the screen at 00:42 that seems clear except for black dots along its body...and then again it moves across the screen much closer at about 01:40 from bottom to top.

Weird...

[edit on 5/15/2007 by Kacen]

Wow, that was a strange video. Whatever it is it is weird. I also wonder what that eel thing was, I have never seen anything like it. The ocean is such a wonderful place. Nice find.

I have been a fisherman all of my life and I had no idea what the heck that thing was. I thought it was some form of turtle at the beginning but then I did not know what it was.

You're right though, it almost certainly is a frog fish. I never even heard of those before. Those dudes are cool. It kinda looks like a little walking dude down there. Good find!

watch teh end of the video as it gets closer, it almost resembles a freaking rabbit!! HAHA

That is one weird little critter..looks like a living cartoon!

I'm sure somewhere its a delicacy and served with sauteed bean sprouts

Great post

It's cute! I hope we can buy them at pet stores soon...
As WOS said... The ocean has the best variety of "weird and wonderful creatures"!

Is there anyway for someone to post stills or pictures of this here. The man has banned all video streaming over work network.

looks like an underwater chinchilla anyway it's just a frogfish.

i agree with gem, that frogfish is adorable!
towards the end of the video it seems to only be using it's front fins to move, with it's back fins/tail curled towards the left side of it's body. either the switch came about after the shark swam past and is some kind of defensive stance, or it was doing this the whole time and the first half of the video, showing four flippers walking, was an illusion
i'm gonna go wiki frogfish now, like the other peeps here i've never heard of them either! *slaps wrist*

edit: i just rewatched the video - turns out it was the second half of the video that gave the illusion of only walking on two fins, so iggy my original comment on that!

[edit on 5/16/2007 by Batty]

Could this be the missing link for poodles?

I think we're on to something here. It turns out that we were not decended from Apes, but rather obscure poodles.

Nice find!

[edit on 16-5-2007 by tyranny22]

what has the missing link got to do with frogfish?

That was a great video. I love deep ocean stuff!
You even see a shark swim by.
That was pretty weird i've never seen something like that before.
I have no constructive input.
As usual.

here's a good picture to compare with the video.
warty frogfish are the same colour as the one in the video, so i'm guessing it was one of them, but i couldn't find a good all-body shot of one, so the pic's of a longlure frogfish.

that wasn't a shark that swam by and I'm not so sure it was so deep. They got a camera down there, and possibly a person manning the camera.

as to what that was, frogfish is correct. they are not deep water fish and they are somewhat prevalent in the aquarium hobby.


here's a pic of a warty frogfish that is very similar to the one in the vid



and a pic of a juvie frogfish



another shot of a walker

You could certainly make the argument that mammals came from the ocean. That thing is flat out walking on the bottom of the ocean. That is evolution in progress if you ask me, I'm sure that little guy wasn't walking like that a few million years back. Purely speculative but my thoughts.

Oh my word! That thing made my day

ps it says how deep it is, 120ft

Originally posted by Crakeur
as to what that was, frogfish is correct. they are not deep water fish and they are somewhat prevalent in the aquarium hobby.

According to the camera readout, it shows the depth at 122-123 feet ( or possibly meters ). Thats deeper than I can go. LOL

I don't much about the underwater cameras, whether or not they can be manipulated as per dates, and times and or if they are in feet or meters for this particular one.

Nice find though