Many fish species are stunningly beautiful – so much so that we sometimes have a hard time taking our eyes off them! There are graceful angelfish and gorgeous butterflyfish; elegant Moorish idols; vibrantly colored parrotfish and clownfish; and the list goes on. Others are models of efficiency and camouflage – big potato cod; speckled trout; sleek, shiny barracuda; these are just a few average-looking fish that might not be in the running to win beauty contests but aren’t necessarily ugly, either. At the other end of the scale are the strange fishes that are kind of like hairless Chihuahuas and flat-faced cats – so darn ugly, they’re cute. Here are four bizarre fish species to watch for next time you’re diving.
Tasseled Anglerfish
The tasseled anglerfish is endemic to Australia, preferring Tasmania, Victoria, and South Australia, where kelp beds offer comfortable camouflage. If you’ve never seen a tasseled anglerfish before and you’ve been diving in areas it inhabits, don’t feel bad – these fish can be very hard to spot. Covered in long reddish-brown appendages that give it the look of an algae covered rock, this fish has a round, lumpy body that allows it to blend in perfectly with its environment. This enables it to capture its prey with minimal effort by dangling a glowing “lure” from its spiny dorsal fin in front of its mouth, convincing smaller creatures to come close.
Frogfish
Like the tassled anglerfish, the frogfish uses a lure to capture smaller prey with ease. This odd-looking fish is fairly small, usually growing to a maximum of about 38 centimeters long. There are several different frogfish species, all with similar characteristics including loose, prickly-looking skin, leg-like pectoral fins with modified foot-like ends that allow it to hop along the seabed, froglike eyes, and an appendage tipped with a waving lure located between and slightly above the eyes. Frogfishes come in a wide variety of colors and are found in most of the world’s tropical and subtropical oceans, including the Indian Ocean and the Red Sea.
Red-Lipped Batfish
This weird-looking fish has a strangely angular face tipped with big, puffy red lips that give it an almost clownlike appearance. Found in the Galapagos and around Cocos Island, the red-lipped batfish is usually encountered at sandy sites at a depth of about 30 meters or more. Extremely awkward swimmers with clublike pectoral fins and flat bodies, these unfortunate looking fish are actually quite endearing in their own strange way.
Stargazer
The stargazer is a truly scary looking fish, and since it’s most often encountered on night dives, it might definitely give you the creeps. A flat bottom dwelling fish with eyes on top of its head and a toothy, upturned mouth, the stargazer is also capable of delivering an electric shock of up to fifty volts, though it is much too lazy to attack divers. You’ll find this fish at muck diving sites in the Philippines, particularly around Moalboal in Cebu. Look for stargazers year-round, with the highest concentrations being seen throughout the months of November and December.
These are just some of the “ugliest” fish in the world – but when you stop to think about the way their bodies allow them to camouflage themselves and live lives of relative ease, you’ll soon realize that beauty is truly in the eye of the beholder – and you may change your mind!