The world's largest and deepest ocean, the Pacific, has some truly strange animals that live in its depths. The Atlantic Ocean is a little smaller and more underrated, but it still has some pretty strange animals living in it.
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Some of the animals that can be found in the Atlantic are strange in the way they look, act, or just how they're able to survive in the depths or the climates in which they live. Here are some strange animals that are found in the Atlantic Ocean but not the Pacific.
Some of these animals have a Pacific Ocean counterpart or many other closely related species, but the animals listed here are specific to the Atlantic Ocean.
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10 North Atlantic Right Whale
Scientific Name: Eubalaena glacialis
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North Atlantic right whales are a species of right whale found only in the North Atlantic Ocean off the coasts of Canada and New England. In the fall, some may migrate as far south as South Carolina and Georgia.
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North Atlantic right whales are one of the world's most endangered whale species, and they have been on the endangered species list since 1970. They were almost hunted to extinction in the 1800s.
North Atlantic right whales are strange creatures due to the barnacles that grow on their heads. The barnacles attach to the whales because it provides them with a steady source of food. The barnacles feed on plankton while the whale swims.
Male whales can also use the barnacles as a weapon of sorts when competing with other males for mates. North Atlantic right whales are one of the most massive marine mammals in the ocean, reaching up to 55 feet in length and weighing up to 110,000 pounds.
Location
North Atlantic; off the Canada and New England coasts
Depth
Up to 131 feet
Times Most Likely to Be Seen
December through March
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9 European Eel
Scientific Name: Anguilla anguilla
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European eels are primarily found along the European Atlantic Coast and in rivers in the Atlantic Coast of European countries, but can also be found in the Mediterranean Sea.
European eels are strange because they have catadromous behavior, meaning that they feed and grow in freshwater and move to the sea to spawn. They live up to 20 years in freshwater, then migrate to the Sargasso Sea in the Caribbean to spawn before they die.
The larvae then move to European waters, including rivers, via the Gulf Stream current. European eels are critically endangered due to fishing, pollution, and dams and other barriers preventing upstream migration.
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Climate change is also one of the major contributors to changes in ocean currents, which can affect the eels' larvae on their migration back to Europe.
Location
European Atlantic coast, Mediterranean and Sargasso Seas, rivers in Europe
Depth
Up to 2,300 feet
Times Most Likely to Be Seen
Spring, midsummer, late fall
8 Atlantic Spiny Dogfish
Scientific Name: Squalus acanthias
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The Atlantic spiny dogfish is a species of shark that lives along the Atlantic Coast from Labrador down to Florida. Although some of the states in this region are more prone to shark bites, you usually don't have to worry about the spiny dogfish because they aren't known to bite humans.
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These sharks are bottom dwellers that grow up to 3-4 feet long, with females being larger than males.
Atlantic spiny dogfish are not overfished due to sustainable harvesting practices put in place by the United States. They are often used in Europe in fish and chips.
Spiny dogfish have two dorsal fins and are unique because their dorsal fins have sharp, venomous spines in front of them. They use these spines to defend against predators.
Location
North Atlantic from Labrador to Florida
Depth
Up to 3,000 feet
Times Most Likely to Be Seen
Spring and summer
Atlantic spiny dogfish go by many other names, including the dogfish shark, Cape dogfish, and Cape shark.
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7 Two-Spotted Clingfish
Scientific Name: Diplecogaster bimaculata
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The two-spotted clingfish, also known as the two-spotted sucker is a cute little guy that only grows to about 2.4 inches in length.
Two-spotted clingfish can be found along Europe's Atlantic Coast as well as in the Mediterranean and Black Seas, and from Norway down to Gibraltar. You'll most likely find them on rocks, around shell beds, or among seagrass. They often shelter in empty mollusk shells.
Two-spotted clingfish get their name from their name from their sucker, which has distinct dark spots on either side of it, and the fish uses the sucker to cling to rocks. The sucker on this fish is actually modified pelvic fins.
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Location
Europe's Atlantic Coast, Mediterranean Sea, and Black Sea
Depth
Up to 180 feet
Times Most Likely to Be Seen
Spring and summer
6 Atlantic Wolffish
Scientific Name: Anarhichas lupus
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The Atlantic wolffish is one of the weirdest deep-sea creatures ever discovered. They are named for their wolf-like teeth. They live off the coast of Canada and New England in rocky habitats. Wolffish prefer to live alone except during spawning season.
When they do get together to spawn and a female wolffish lays eggs, the male will guard the eggs for up to nine months until the eggs hatch.
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Due to overfishing, it is illegal to catch Atlantic wolffish or have them in your possession. Overfishing this species is bad because they only live in a small part of the Atlantic Ocean. They do have a long lifespan for fish though, with some living up to 20 years.
Location
North Atlantic from Canada to New England
Depth
Up to 480 meters (1,600 feet)
Times Most Likely to Be Seen
Spring, summer, and fall
5 Greenland Shark
Scientific Name: Somniosus microcephalus
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Greenland sharks live in the cold waters of the Arctic and North Atlantic Oceans, from Baffin Bay to the Gulf of St. Lawrence and the North Sea. They are definitely strange creatures. They are one of the largest shark species, with some reaching up to 19 feet or more in length.
But they are also the longest-living shark and the longest-living vertebrate. They have been known to live up to 272 years or more.
Unlike other sharks, they have no hard tissues and no fin spines, making it difficult to determine their age by counting growth bands. Instead, scientists have used carbon dating based on proteins found in the sharks' eyes that do not degrade with age to determine how old Greenland sharks are.
They estimated one shark to be between 272 and 512 years of age. The reason these sharks can live so long is that they grow at a very slow rate, likely in part because they have a slow metabolism due to the cold waters in which they live.
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Greenland sharks are the only shark species that is able to survive water temperatures that are as cold as the Arctic Sea and North Atlantic (1-12°C).
Location
The Arctic and North Atlantic, from Baffin Bay to the Gulf of St. Lawrence to the North Sea
Depth
Up to 8,600 feet
Times Most Likely to Be Seen
Year-round, but especially during migration in summer and winter
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4 Atlantic Torpedo Ray
Scientific Name: Torpedo nobiliana
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There are several species of torpedo ray, but as the name implies, the Atlantic torpedo ray is the one found in the Atlantic Ocean.
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They are found from Nova Scotia all the way down to Brazil and as far as Scotland down to West Africa, so they have one of the widest ranges of any species on our list. Atlantic torpedo rays are solitary and nocturnal creatures, making them hard to find.
The Atlantic torpedo ray is an electric ray. It can produce up to 220 volts of electricity that it uses to defend itself by stunning or killing prey. An electric shock from the Atlantic torpedo ray is usually not deadly to humans, but it can be painful.
Atlantic Torpedo Rays were used as medicine by the ancient Greeks and Romans. Atlantic torpedo rays can give birth to up to 60 young, and they produce uterine milk to feed their young.
The naval weapon, the torpedo, was named after torpedo rays.
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Location
Nova Scotia to Brazil and as far east as Scotland down to West Africa
Depth
Up to 2,600 feet
Times Most Likely to Be Seen
Year-round, at night
3 Atlantic Guitarfish
Scientific Name: Pseudobatos lentiginosus
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As with the torpedo ray, there are several species of guitarfish, but the Atlantic guitarfish is one that inhabits the Atlantic Ocean. The Atlantic guitarfish is a smaller species of guitarfish, only growing up to about 30 inches long.
They are also rare compared to other guitarfish, perhaps due in part to their size, which makes them easy prey for larger sharks. They also have a smaller range, being found mostly in the western Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico from North Carolina to the Yucatán Peninsula.
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Atlantic guitarfish are known for their guitar-shaped bodies. They live in shallower areas compared to other animals on this list.
They like to bury themselves in the sand and mud to rest, and you may only see their fins sticking out of the sand on the ocean floor. Atlantic guitarfish can also be found in freshwater habitats.
Location
Atlantic Ocean and Gulf of Mexico from North Carolina to Yucatán
Depth
Up to 98 feet
Times Most Likely to Be Seen
Late spring and summer
2 Northern Stargazer
Scientific Name: Astroscopus guttatus
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Northern stargazers are definitely strange-looking Atlantic Ocean fish that can be found in the western Atlantic, from New York down to North Carolina.
They are named for their eyes on the top of their bodies that are always looking up, like they are gazing at the stars. But the eyes being in this position serve a practical purpose.
These fish are bottom dwellers that blend in with the sand on the bottom of the ocean. They use their eyes to look up for prey, and then ambush the prey when it comes close.
Northern stargazers can also change the height of their eyes by filling tissues at the back of their eyes with fluid. The mouth is on the top of the body as well. Perhaps one of the most interesting and unexpected characteristics of the northern stargazer is that it has organs on the top of it that can transmit an electric shock.
There is also a southern stargazer, which is similar to the northern stargazer but lives further south in the Atlantic, from North Carolina to Brazil.
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Location
Western Atlantic from New York to North Carolina
Depth
Up to 120 feet
Times Most Likely to Be Seen
Spring and early summer
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1 Sea Lamprey
Scientific Name: Petromyzon marinus
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The sea lamprey is an alien-like creature that can be found on the Atlantic coasts of Europe and North America, as well as the Mediterranean and Black Sea.
Sea lampreys are parasitic fish that are sometimes called vampire fish because they suck the blood from sturgeons, trout, pike, and other fish. Their mouth acts kind of like a saw and drill that they use to burrow into the flesh of their prey.
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Sea lampreys have also been found in the Great Lakes. They were likely introduced to the Great Lakes through canals such as the Erie Canal, but they are an invasive species in the Great Lakes region.
They are common in Europe around Portugal, France, and Spain, where they are considered a delicacy, and they are often eaten pickled in Finland.
Location
Atlantic Coasts of Europe and North America; Mediterranean and Black Seas; Great Lakes
Depth
Up to 13,100 feet
Times Most Likely to Be Seen
Spring and summer