Pyrosome and Salps
August 1, 2013 8:48 PM   Subscribe

 
That is way cool.
posted by LobsterMitten at 9:00 PM on August 1, 2013


Yet another reason why I don't want to go anywhere near Australia.
posted by Chocolate Pickle at 9:04 PM on August 1, 2013 [1 favorite]


So very awesome.
posted by Foci for Analysis at 9:06 PM on August 1, 2013


I am not surprised when I learn of the existence of a new fish or insect or something that I hadn't heard of before. But when it comes to my attention that there's an entire kind of life form that I have not only never heard of but never even imagined anything like, I'm a little dazzled.

The world is fucking cool.
posted by jacquilynne at 9:09 PM on August 1, 2013 [5 favorites]


They're totally harmless filter feeders, Chocolate Pickle.
posted by Mercaptan at 9:24 PM on August 1, 2013 [1 favorite]


These are only the scouts. Time to start building jaegers.
posted by maryr at 9:43 PM on August 1, 2013 [9 favorites]


All those little mouths just want to give you gentle friendly butterfly kisses, CP.
posted by hattifattener at 9:48 PM on August 1, 2013 [4 favorites]


Those are cool as shit and I am happy to learn about them. But someone needs to tell aerospace engineer turned biologist Henry Astley that "suck, squeeze, bang, blow" is commonly understood to refer to the Otto cycle, not jets.
posted by TedW at 9:49 PM on August 1, 2013 [3 favorites]


True. Everyone knows that the way jet engines work is "stuff goes in, stuff happens, stuff goes out faster than it went in".
posted by hattifattener at 9:56 PM on August 1, 2013 [1 favorite]


"suck, squeeze, bang, blow"

In San Diego it's called the Filner cycle.
posted by yoink at 10:10 PM on August 1, 2013 [2 favorites]


Are you sure this isn't one of those art projects by that guy who put orange flags all over Central Park in New York City?

I love when we find stuff in the ocean that's so weird my brain automatically assumes it must be fake.
posted by straight at 10:12 PM on August 1, 2013 [1 favorite]





These are only the scouts. Time to start building jaegers.


We already have one.
posted by Charlemagne In Sweatpants at 10:31 PM on August 1, 2013 [1 favorite]


anyway isn't this the thing from The Abyss?
posted by Charlemagne In Sweatpants at 10:32 PM on August 1, 2013 [2 favorites]


They are impossibly difficult to keep as pets. Hard to domesticate, incapable of expressing affection. I do meet a lot of nice people taking it to the dog park, but have you priced pyrosome feed lately? I don't know why I keep replacing them when they die. I'm smitten, I guess.
posted by Slarty Bartfast at 10:32 PM on August 1, 2013


"The whole colony is shaped like a giant thimble with a point on one end and an opening on the other..."

Condoms. Those things are way too long to be thimbles. The next available analogy is a condom.
They're shaped like jimmyhats. I mean come on, they even look like they have reservoir tips, ffs.
posted by GoingToShopping at 12:03 AM on August 2, 2013 [3 favorites]


I hate the ocean.
posted by ZipRibbons at 12:11 AM on August 2, 2013 [3 favorites]


I think they're cute. Lovely colors. Never heard of them before. Thanks for posting this. Now I have to amaze Mr .Roquette with this.
posted by Katjusa Roquette at 1:03 AM on August 2, 2013


Shoggoths. Definitely.
posted by Zarkonnen at 2:29 AM on August 2, 2013 [1 favorite]


That video was horrifying.

Not that sea-whatever, but the infomercial pseudo-music.

For some unknown reason How It's Made is the only show in history that is able to pull off that kind of soundtrack.
posted by dgaicun at 2:34 AM on August 2, 2013 [2 favorites]


Admittedly I'm already somewhat snake-phobic, but that thing set off every NO NO NO NO NO THIS IS MADE OF WRONG circuit in my brain. Doing my best not to dry-heave at my desk, jesus.
posted by ominous_paws at 2:50 AM on August 2, 2013


I refuse to believe this is real.
posted by Literaryhero at 3:11 AM on August 2, 2013 [1 favorite]


Jet powered life? We are indeed, living in the future.
posted by klarck at 3:57 AM on August 2, 2013


I keep expecting to see a family of surfer dude turtles riding through it.
posted by condour75 at 4:21 AM on August 2, 2013 [1 favorite]


I don't care what it eats, you don't want to see "jet powered" and "animal" anywhere near each other in sentence.
posted by tommasz at 5:02 AM on August 2, 2013 [2 favorites]


True. Everyone knows that the way jet engines work is "stuff goes in, stuff happens, stuff goes out faster than it went in".

oh my god you guys want to know how jet engines work i can tell you how jet engines work sit down here i will pull out my textbooks and drafting paper

guys

where are you going
posted by backseatpilot at 5:14 AM on August 2, 2013 [10 favorites]


Buried in the comments to the first link is a link to this: Those fiery bodies.
posted by Kirth Gerson at 5:27 AM on August 2, 2013


Metafilter: suck and blow are expert territory for these guys.

Awesome post; I'd never heard of these.
posted by freecellwizard at 6:04 AM on August 2, 2013


Despite their improbable nature, these horrifying giants, the spawn of the worst movie villains, are actually delicate and fragile. The bizarre unicorns of the sea.

The narwhals and their sharp sharp horn/teeth/spikes are going to have a word with you about your comparisons.
posted by GenjiandProust at 6:13 AM on August 2, 2013


Didn't G.I. JOE have to fight these things?
posted by Strange Interlude at 6:40 AM on August 2, 2013



Those are cool as shit and I am happy to learn about them. But someone needs to tell aerospace engineer turned biologist Henry Astley that "suck, squeeze, bang, blow" is commonly understood to refer to the Otto cycle, not jets.

From GE's turbofan website :
Suck-Squeeze-Bang-Blow

The term that is generally used to describe the operation of a jet engine. The fan sucks in the air, the compressor squeezes the air down, the combustor ignites the mixture (bang) and the turbine blows the air out the back creating thrust and turning the forward fan.
posted by Pogo_Fuzzybutt at 6:48 AM on August 2, 2013


"suck, squeeze, bang, blow"

Yep, I'm still a 15 year old boy at heart.

posted by RolandOfEld at 7:17 AM on August 2, 2013 [1 favorite]


Is there some natural upper bound on how long the colony can get? 60 feet is nearly half the length of the siphonophore Praya (one of the longest animals on earth).
posted by kurumi at 8:33 AM on August 2, 2013


Thanks for posting this, homunculus.
posted by Sleeper at 10:06 PM on August 2, 2013


Zarkonnen: Shoggoths. Definitely.
Yeah, when I saw that tube wafting out from the coral formation, my first thought was FOR THE LOVE OF GOD DON'T WAKE IT AAAAGGGGH!!!

I mean, I'm a pretty rational atheist and all, but the ocean would have gotten a teensy bit warmer just then had I been down there.

can you pee in those suits?
posted by IAmBroom at 11:39 AM on August 6, 2013


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