Bathyphysa confira, aka Flying Spaghetti Monster (Photo: Project SERPENT)

The Flying Spaghetti Monster was first described in 2005, not by scientists but by a man poking fun at intelligent design. The FSM  “revealed himself to me in a dream,” Bobby Henderson said. He was a God-like creature that oversees carbon dating, and he looked like spaghetti and meatballs. The Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster was soon established, and Pastafarians begin spreading the FSM gospel.

Followers of the Flying Spaghetti Monster sometimes use this logo (Image: Brian Sawyer/Flickr)

If the Judeo-Christian God created man in his own image, Bathyphysa confira might be the equivalent earthly creation of the Flying Spaghetti Monster. This very strange creature was recently spotted 4,000 feet under the ocean, by a deep sea remote operating vehicle that was working on repairs of an oil rig, off the coast of Angola. 

The oil workers who saw this creature nicknamed it the Flying Spaghetti Monster, after the erstwhile deity. But they also sent the video to the scientists at the National Oceanography Center, who identified it as Bathyphysa confira.

Though it looks like one creature it’s actually a colony of individual animals, with specialized functions. They cannot survive on their own, so the whole mishmash of tagliatelle-like strands is generally considered one being. And, sure, it looks weird, but so do humans if you look at them long enough. 

Bonus finds: two-headed snake, a bar of gold

Every day, we highlight one newly lost or found object, curiosity or wonder. Discover something unusual or amazing? Tell us about it! Send your finds to sarah.laskow@atlasobscura.com.