Lucky Diver Encounters 'Underwater Unicorn' Off Victoria Coast

A diver had a close-up encounter with what she described as "an underwater unicorn" while on an excursion off the coast of Victoria earlier this month. Footage filmed by marine biologist https://www.instagram.com/shereemarris/ Sheree Marris shows her meeting a https://www.britannica.com/animal/crabeater-seal crabeater seal while diving in the Mornington Peninsula, which she told Storyful was "a once-in-a-lifetime encounter". "What is so special about finding this marine mammal is that these seals spend their entire lives in the pack-ice zone surrounding the Antarctic," Marris explained to Storyful. "So to see one so far from home, thousands of kilometers away in the warmer waters of the Mornington Peninsula - was like encountering an underwater unicorn." She mentioned she saw it feeding, which was "an added bonus", as despite what their name suggests, they do not eat crabs. "They have specially designed teeth with extra projections to gulp in seawater and strain out tiny crustaceans called krill," Marris said. The Marine Mammal Foundation shared https://www.instagram.com/p/C2BRPdrSDgt/?img_index=5 an Instagram post urging the public to follow government guidelines if they happened upon the unusual visitor. "This incredible sighting is a great reminder to follow all government regulations when in the presence of marine mammals, and remain 30m from seals which have hauled out," the post said. "This will allow the crabeater seal to rest up, and head back out to sea when it is ready." (Footage by Sheree Marris/Storyful via Getty Images UGC)