18 Colossal Sea Creatures That Actually Exist

 The ocean is an amazing place full of many unusual forms of life. You won't believe the size of these 18 colossal sea creatures. Wait until you see what lurks beneath the ocean's surface.

1) Blue Whale 

2) Great White Shark

Everyone is familiar with the great white, especially after the 1975 hit film, Jaws. Adult males can grow up to 21 feet (6.4 m) and weigh over 7,000lbs (3,175 kg). They are typically found swimming the waters in South Africa, Mexico, and Australia. 

3) Giant Oceanic Manta Ray

Ocean mantas can grow over 30 feet (9 m) in width and have a lifespan of about 20 years. They make their home in tropical and subtropical waters, primarily in Thailand. 

4) Southern Elephant Seal 

These massive creatures are the largest of the seal family, weighing anywhere between 8,800 lbs (4,000 kg), and measuring over 20 feet (6 m) for males. Believe it or not, they actually get their name from their trunk-like snouts.

5) Fin Whale

The fin whale is the second-largest behind the blue whale. They are more commonly referred to as razorbacks or common rorqual and found in the Northern Atlantic and Southern Hemispheres. Adults grow to reach around 90 feet (27.4 m), with and tip the scales at over 80 short tons (74 metric tons).

6) Whale Shark

If you thought the great white was large, wait until you see the size of its distant relative, the gigantic whale shark. Whale sharks are slow-moving filter-feeding sharks. They weigh around 21.5 metric tons and can grow over 42 feet (12.8 m), and are known to pop up throughout the South African waters. 

7) Giant Squid

Giant squids are deep-sea dwellers that belong to the Architeuthidae family. These bizarre creatures can grow nearly 60 feet (18.3 m) in size. They are also the largest invertebrates on Earth. 

8) Giant Isopod

Giant isopods are members of the crustacean family and a distant relative to shrimp and crabs. Giant isopods measure 30 inches (76 cm) in length and weigh about 3.7lbs (1.7 kg). They are commonly found in the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. 

9) Portuguese Man-of-War

These odd-shaped marine mammals are often confused for jellyfish, but they belong to a single multicellular organism family known as siphonophores. Their massive tentacles reach over 165 feet (50 m), despite having relatively small body frames.

10) Sperm Whale

Sperm whales are known for their incredible diving depth when scooping below the ocean floors. They can reach 7,380 feet (2,249 m) below the surface to snack on squid, which is their prey of choice. Adult males can reach 67 feet (20.5 m) as well.   

11) Caribbean Barrel Sponge

The giant barrel sponge is nicknamed the "redwood of the reef" due to its long lifespan, which can be up to 2,000 years. They grow at depths that range from 33 feet down (10 m) all the way to 390 feet (120 m) beneath the ocean surface. 

12) Giant Oarfish

Giant oarfish can grow up to 36 feet (11 m) in length, despite being nearly palm-size at birth. The massive one seen here was discovered by U.S. servicemen after it had washed up on the San Diego shores of California in 1996. It measured a staggering 23 feet (7 m) in size. 

13) Giant Tube Worm

Giant tube worms live several miles deep beneath the Pacific Ocean floors near black smokers (sea vents). They can reach a length of up to 8 feet (2.4 m) and have a very high tolerance for hydrogen sulfide levels.

14) Giant Pacific Octopus

The giant Pacific octopus grows larger than any octopus species and outlives them all. The largest one ever found measured a whopping 30 feet (9.1m) in length and weighed over 600 lbs (272 kg).  

15) Lion's Mane Jellyfish

Lion's mane jellyfish is the largest of its species, measuring up to 7.6 feet (2.3 m) in diameter, with tentacles extending beyond 120 feet (37 m). The life-like model seen here is on display at the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History in Washington, D.C. 

16) Giant Sea Star

The giant sea star might have been the source of inspiration for the SpongeBob SquarePants character of Patrick Star. They are typically found along the western coast of North America and can grow as large as 24 inches (61 cm) in size. 

17) Japanese Spider Crab

The Japanese spider crab looks like something straight out of a science fiction movie, but it is indeed very real. The massive crab has the record for the longest leg span of any living arthropod. They can reach over 12 feet (3.8 m) and weigh up to 42 lbs (19 kg). 

18) Giant Clam

The giant clam can grow up to 4 feet (1.2 m) in length, topping the scales at a jaw-dropping weight of 500 lbs (227 kg). They are found at the bottom of the South Pacific and Indian Ocean floors.  The giant clam spends the duration of its lifecycle attached to one particular spot on a coral reef.  

H/T: distractify.com

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