An “alien tree” has been discovered in an oceanic wasteland. It turned out to be an animal! (4 photos)

At a depth below 2 km, a gloomy desert begins in the ocean. There are almost no animals here, there is no light either, the pressure is monstrous. Rare life takes such bizarre forms that our usual perception of nature no longer works. Meet Sponge Ping Pong Tree.





Such organisms are known to grow up to 50 cm.

Just imagine, you are a scientist and you control a deep-sea drone to explore the ocean depths. Boredom. A wasteland is a wasteland. Darkness, stones, sometimes some blind shrimp swim by. And suddenly, you see a tree with balls growing on it! It seems it's time to rest. Or not?



The Ping Pong Tree was discovered during exploration of the deep waters of Antarctica.

This creature is a sponge. This means that it is an animal, not a plant. Albeit very primitive. Moreover, it is a predator! It is known that the sponge uses ghost balls to hunt plankton and even small fish and crustaceans. The surface of the balls is strewn with small hooks. If any animal touches the surface of the ball, it will not come off. And kicking will only get you stuck more. After successfully capturing the prey, the sponge begins to slowly absorb the prey inside the ball, where it is digested.





The feeding principle is very similar to carnivorous plants from land.

So far, this is all the data that has been obtained on this funny character. But we will never cease to be amazed at how many secrets the ocean holds!