Scientists captured footage of a rare "dancing" blue monster spotted on the ocean floor.

Humanity has managed to map only about 20% of the ocean floor up to this point, and when it comes to the biological species that call it home, our knowledge is even more limited. As a result, deep-sea research missions consistently return with reports of encounters with strange creatures.

Such was the case with researchers from the University of Western Australia, who set off on the vessel "Dagon" for an expedition in the Pacific Ocean. There, they were fortunate enough to encounter an astonishing creature that was hopping along the ocean floor at a depth of 4.8 kilometers.

In reality, this is not a distant relative of Cthulhu, but the octopus Cirrothauma magna, which is referred to as "big-eye jellyhead" in English sources.

These organisms, as is typical for deep-sea dwellers, are poorly studied. They have only been observed a few times at great depths in the Indian, Atlantic, and Pacific Oceans, hinting at their broad habitat range.

Members of this species possess a fragile, gelatinous body that is very difficult to bring to the surface without causing damage. This animal can reach sizes of up to 1.7 meters, comparable to the height of an average human. This characteristic makes it one of the largest species in its family, as other species rarely exceed 20-30 centimeters.

Regarding the "dance" seen in the video, scientists speculate that the octopus is searching for food in this manner. It jumps, spreads its mantle, and slowly descends to the bottom, capturing all the tiny food particles. The movements then repeat.

Missions at such depths typically require expensive equipment capable of operating under immense pressure, in complete darkness, and at very low temperatures. Therefore, it will be a while before we fully understand what other peculiar creatures are hiding from us in the deepest parts of the ocean.

As previously reported, another bizarre inhabitant was recently discovered on the ocean floor. Theonella conica sponges have been found to accumulate massive doses of molybdenum, making them toxic to any potential predator.