Weirdest sea creatures found around the UK

Anemones Feeding On Jelly

A group of plumose anemones feeding on a moon jellyfish which they have captured - Alexander Mustard/2020VISION

Top 5 weird and wonderful sea creatures found around the UK

The mauve stinger jellyfish

Mark Thomas

Number 5 - The mauve stinger jellyfish

This jellyfish is an occasional visitor to UK shores. They give off a bioluminescence light!

Dead man's fingers

Dead man's fingers ©Linda Pitkin/2020VISION

Number 4 - Dead man’s fingers

These gruesome sounding creatures are actually a type of coral! They get their name as they branch out into lobes as they grow - making them look like fingers on a hand.

 

Orange-clubbed sea slug

Orange-clubbed sea slug ©Alex Mustard/2020VISION

Number 3 -  The orange-clubbed sea slug

A small colourful sea slug that can be found grazing on sea mats on the rocky shore.  They are hermaphrodites - meaning they are both male and female and lay thousands of eggs in a long spiral on seaweed.

Baked bean ascidian (sea squirt)

Baked bean sea squirt - Lara Howe

Number 2 - The baked bean sea squirt

The baked bean sea squirt looks just like the stuff you put on your toast. Kind of. It has a jelly like body and two siphons, one that draws in water and one that squirts it out.

Strawberry Anemone

Strawberry Anemone ©Paul Naylor

Number 1 - The strawberry anemone  

Its green spots and red body means it looks like a strawberry! Anemones breed by releasing sperm and eggs into the sea. The fertilized eggs develop into a larvae which settles on the seabed before developing into baby anemones.