Deep-sea creatures for kids

What's here

Twelve of the funniest-looking animals on Earth, all from the deep dark part of the ocean where the sun doesn't reach, so half of them bring their own lights. Tap one and it glows, wobbles, gulps, or waves, then shares a fact that sounds made up and isn't. There really is a crab with fuzzy mitten arms. There really is a fish with a see-through head.

Down there, weird is normal. This hub treats every one of them as the friendly oddball it is.

Meet these first

• Anglerfish. Dangles a glowing light in front of its mouth to find food in the dark, like a headlamp it never has to charge.
• Blobfish. Looks squishy and droopy up here, but deep down in the sea it looks just right. A good lesson hiding in a silly face.
• Dumbo Octopus. Two big fins that flap like an elephant's ears. It swims by ear-flapping. Genuinely.
• Yeti Crab. Fuzzy, hairy arms like fluffy white mittens, and it waves them around.
• Giant Squid. The biggest eyes of any animal, as big as dinner plates. Compare with an actual dinner plate.
• Barreleye. A see-through head with eyes that point straight up. Toddlers accept this instantly. Adults struggle.
• Gulper Eel. A huge stretchy mouth that can swallow a big meal in one gulp. The champion of "one more bite."
• Sea Pig. A chubby little critter that walks the deep sea floor on stubby legs. It is exactly as cute as it sounds.

The firefly squid, lanternfish, viperfish, and vampire squid finish the crew, and the vampire squid just wraps its cozy cape around itself to hide.

How to play (60 seconds)

Turn the lights low, not off, and make it a glow hunt: "Who's got a light? Find another one." Then play copy-the-creature. Flap your ears like the dumbo octopus, wave your mittens like the yeti crab, do one enormous gulp like the gulper eel. Finish with a squishy blobfish face contest. There is no way to lose a blobfish face contest.

Good to know

Silly names stick. "Blobfish" and "sea pig" get repeated because they're fun in the mouth, and every repeat is practice. Glow, light, big, and squishy all come along for the ride, and toddlers pick the word they love and wear it out. Let them.

Keep exploring

The free first-words cards and 50-word checklist are on the printables page for word practice above sea level.

Ocean animals covers the sunny upstairs of the same ocean, and sharks patrols the floor between. The boats hub has the submarine that could actually visit these guys, and nighttime animals is the land version of creatures who like the dark. Everything else is on the homepage.