A YouTuber conducting underwater filming in the Indo-Pacific has unintentionally recorded a marine animal that specialists have not been able to identify, prompting scientific interest in the unusual sighting.

Content creator Barny Dillarstone was lowering his camera system into the Bali Sea earlier this year when the rig slipped and descended to an estimated depth of 200 meters. The device continued recording on the seafloor over two consecutive nights before being retrieved.

The footage included several deep-water species typically difficult to observe, such as conger eels, nautilus, and various nocturnal crustaceans. However, one clip has drawn particular attention: a ray-like creature that approached the baited camera and remained briefly in view before swimming away.

Marine experts consulted by Dillarstone said the animal resembles a stingaree, a small deep-sea ray found mainly in Australian waters. Stingarees are not known to inhabit the Bali Sea, and the two species previously documented near Indonesia — the Java stingaree and the Kai stingaree — are either considered extinct or recorded only from limited specimens.

Scientists reviewing the footage have not been able to match the animal to any confirmed species from the region. While they caution that video evidence alone cannot establish a new species, the sighting may represent either an undocumented population or a previously unrecorded species.

Researchers note that the world’s oceans remain largely unexplored. Fewer than 250,000 marine species have been formally identified, though estimates suggest the actual number may be several times higher.

Dillarstone said he plans to conduct further drops in the same area in hopes of capturing clearer footage and providing additional material for scientific examination.