Meet the Gulper Eel — The Deep Sea’s Weirdest Creature

By Hassaan Karowalia

A Gulper Eel swimming in the deep sea

Let’s take a moment to appreciate how weird the ocean is. We know more about the surface of Mars than we do about the deep sea — and creatures like the gulper eel are a big reason why it’s so fascinating.

Why is it named The “Gulper” Eel?

The gulper eel — also called Saccopharynx ampullaceus and The Pelican Eel, is a deep-sea fish that can be found at depths between 500 and 3,000 meters (about 1,600 to 9,800 feet) beneath the ocean’s surface which places it right in the twilight zone. It usually grows to about 2.5 feet long, which isn’t huge, but its mouth? That thing is massive.

 Not screaming, just hungry. The gulper eel’s jaw can open wide enough to eat stuff bigger than itself!

Its head and jaw make up nearly a third of its body, and its mouth can unhinge and balloon out like a pelican’s pouch (hence the nickname "pelican eel"). It’s built to gulp — hence the name.

In the deep sea, you don’t get regular meals. Food is rare and random, so when the gulper eel sees something edible, it doesn’t mess around. It just lunges with its giant mouth open, basically scooping up anything in its path but they like to chomp more on small fish and shrimp.

It’s not exactly a graceful hunter, but it gets the job done.

A Glowing Tail? Of Course It Has One.

As if the big mouth wasn’t enough, the gulper eel also has a glow-in-the-dark tail. Yep. There’s a little light-producing organ (called a photophore) at the tip of its long, skinny tail that glows to attract prey. Just like every next deep sea creature, the gulper eel produces its very own light, this is called Bioluminescence. 

Think of it like a lightsaber, it produces light but to help it hunt rather than to illuminate the ocean floor and assist in vision.

 The eel’s glowing tail is like a lure, drawing in curious sea creatures that get too close.

It’s Not Really an Eel

Plot twist: the gulper eel isn’t a “true” eel. It belongs to its own super-weird family of deep-sea fish, its a Ray Finned Fish. Its body is super soft and squishy which helps it survive the insane pressure that deep down.

Also, it doesn’t have scales, just smooth, dark, rubbery skin. Perfect for the creepy aesthetic.

Rare, Elusive, and Totally Mysterious

Very few gulper eels have ever been seen alive in the wild. Most of what we know comes from random deep-sea trawls or the occasional deep-sea exploration footage. But every time we do spot one, it reminds us how little we actually know about the ocean.