Florida wildlife cops posted a photo of a glow-in-the-dark ‘creepy critter.’ What is it?
Year-round in Florida, lots of frightening critters make your heart beat a little faster.
The folks at the Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission put out a reminder of that on Monday, a few hours before trick-or-treaters hit the streets for Halloween.
So, want to see something really scary?
On Facebook, the agency posted a picture of a bioluminescent organ vampire squid. These critters have light-producing organs known as photophores.
Never heard of it? You’re not alone. This guy or gal lives far away from you and me, in the dark depths of the Atlantic and Gulf.
“It’s a real thing!” says the caption, which provides an explanation on the odd-looking creature that looks a little like a swimming bat toy.
“Despite the name, they are neither octopus nor squid, nor do they have teeth or drink blood,” says the state agency. “These creepy critters are classified as a mollusk and are the last surviving species of their order.”
As for the term “vampire,” that refers to their red eyes, dark tentacles and cape-like webbing between their tentacles.
A little more unsettling trivia: When this squiggly bugger feels threatened, its tentacles produce a bioluminescent mucus that can glow for up to 10 minutes, the post concludes.
“So cool!” wrote a social media user in the comments.
Another inquired about the mollusks’ size, and the FWC says they can grow up to about a foot long.
“Wonders never cease,” chimed in another, “especially in the ocean.”
“WOW!” concluded someone else in all caps.
And finally, one Jules Verne fan posted a black and white gif of the famed Giant Squid from the 1954 Disney classic flick based on the Jules Verne book “20,000 Leagues Under the Sea.”
This story was originally published October 31, 2022 at 11:54 AM with the headline "Florida wildlife cops posted a photo of a glow-in-the-dark ‘creepy critter.’ What is it?."
