The vampire squid (Vampyroteuthis infernalis) isn’t a fearsome predator, it drifts in the deep-sea darkness and survives in the ocean’s lowest oxygen zones thanks to its ultra-efficient blue blood and sluggish metabolism. With velvety webbed arms that can invert into a “pumpkin puff,” razor-spine cirri, giant eyes the size of dimes, hundreds of photophores, and a glowing cloud of sticky bioluminescent mucus that can dazzle predators for up to 10 minutes, it’s a deep-sea ghost cloaked in sci-fi e