What the heck is it? Australian scientists discover peanut worm that looks like a male reproductive organ

A team of scientists have discovered a bizarre sea creature or a peanut worm from Museums Victoria in Australia. The creature that resembles a male reproductive organ has created a lot of buzz on social media due to its appearance. The scientists were on a month-long expedition into the oceanic abyss off the Australian coast when they came across this strange creature.

Apart from the peanut worm, the team has also discovered a variety of underwater organisms such as a faceless fish, a zombie worm, a flesh-eating crustacean and a sea pig. But the peanut worm caught everybody’s attention and drew hilarious reactions from social media users.

IBTimes UK first reported the discovery with a picture of the peanut worm, quickly capturing the public eye. According to the report, it was named ‘peanut worm’ because when threatened, these marine creatures contracted their long heads inwards and form a shape like that of a peanut kernel.

Peanut worms or sipunculid worms are a group of bilaterally symmetrical, unsegmented worms. They consists of between 144 to 320 various species. They have the ability to reproduce both sexually and asexually.

Usually found in discarded shells and burrows, Peanut worms live in shallow waters. The team of researchers first released a picture of a faceless fish. It was also a rare discovery.

“Australia’s deep sea environment is larger in size than the mainland, and until now, almost nothing was known about life on the abyssal plain,” Dr. Tim O’Hara, the expedition’s Chief Scientist and Museums Victoria’s Senior Curator of Marine Invertebrates, said.

“We’re really excited about the discoveries that we’ve made and are thrilled that we can now share them with the Australian and international public,” the Inquisitr reported.

Most of the creatures discovered will now be sent to different laboratories across Australia and will be examined. Some of them will be displayed in an exhibit at the Melbourne Museum soon.

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Peculiar group of sea creatures found in deep Australian abyss https://t.co/5WtQziRTCO pic.twitter.com/l66QwStKpA

— IBTimes UK (@IBTimesUK) June 17, 2017

In Pictures: ‘Faceless Fish’ Scientists Return With Huge Haul of Weird Sea Creatures From Marine Abyss https://t.co/edlAbeSFG1 pic.twitter.com/DYzNuWqkRx

— Newsweek INT. (@Newsweek_INT) June 17, 2017