Ningen
The realm of the ocean is so unexplored that it almost makes sense that some rumored, but yet unseen, creatures may call this strange blue world home. One of these rumored creatures to exist in the great depths of the ocean is the Ningen. The being is huge, stark white, and vaguely humanoid (in fact, the Japanese characters that represent Ningen means humanoid: 人間).
It was first allegedly spotted by a group of Japanese fishermen who were in the Arctic around 2007. Since then, it has only been sporadically seen and reported although it is becoming more and more well known. They seem to largely populate the icy and distant waters of Antarctica.
As mentioned above they are quite large, some reports saying up to 30 meters although some reports have been smaller. They are also a bright and obvious white, which attracts the human eye. In addition to their size and color, they are also quite humanoid. They have what appears to be a human-head-shaped head, as well as a short and thick neck. The Ningen also seems to have shoulders and two large, long and perhaps unjointed arms. The arms typically end in long fins that are reminiscent of hands, and some reports go as far as to say they have five fingers on the hand (which would seem to be a not very good advantage for swimming and swift movement). These are the main humanoid features, as it appears its torso and rest of its body ends in a tapering body ending in a fin.
In regards to the fact, although it appears human-like, it is flat and smooth and doesn’t seem to have any discernible features besides two very large eyes (which are typically linked to creatures who inhabit the deep ocean) and a long, thin slit for a mouth.
Although it is shocking that something this big could go unnoticed or unremarked, one should consider the giant squid. The first images ever of giant live squid were discovered by researchers in Japan in 2004, and the first live squid found was not brought to the surface until 2006.
Is it possible this strange Ningen isn’t a new creature, but a different kind of giant squid or a deformed giant squid? Like the Ningen, Giant Squids are quite elusive, have massive eyes, barely ever break the surface, have massive bodies, and carcasses of giant squids have been found in all of the world’s oceans, even the Antarctic. In fact, there a specific squid that is called the ‘Colossal’ Squid (M. hamiltoni) that has been found in the Antarctic and the largest specimen ever caught, also the largest cephalopod ever caught alive was also in the Ross Sea in the Antarctic.
Other theories believe that the Ningen may be simple pareidolia, which is the perception of recognizable shapes in a random pattern. Perhaps the Ningen sightings are a result of human-shaped icebergs?
Or, is there a brand new creature that looks strangely human-like trolling the deep?
Thanks to Luke C for the suggestion!
The above image is from Wikimedia commons from AWeith and this file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0.
