Deep in the dark, cold parts of the ocean lives a fish that has become famous for all the wrong reasons.
The blobfish is often shown in photos as a sad, melting creature that looks more like jelly than a living animal. Because of this, it is often called the world’s ugliest fish.
1. The blobfish has no skeleton
The blobfish is not built like most fish. It has no skeleton and very little muscle. Its body is soft and jelly-like, almost like thick gel.
This strange body helps it survive in the deep ocean, where strong pressure gives it shape and support. Without that pressure, its body cannot hold itself together.
2. It looks normal in deep water
In its natural home, the blobfish does not look strange at all. Deep under the sea, the water pressure is extremely high.
That pressure holds the blobfish’s soft body in place, making it look more like a regular fish.
The famous droopy face only appears when the fish is pulled up to the surface, where the pressure is much lower.
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3. Surface pressure makes it look like a blob
When a blobfish is brought out of deep water, the sudden loss of pressure causes its body to collapse.
Since it has no skeleton to support it, the fish spreads out and droops. This is why photos of blobfish look so shocking.
The truth is, the blobfish was never meant to live at the surface.
4. It lives where humans cannot
Blobfish live very deep in the ocean, close to the seabed. The pressure down there is about 120 times stronger than on land.
A human body would be crushed at that depth. The blobfish, however, is perfectly suited to this extreme environment and can float calmly where few creatures survive.
5. Blobfish are found in only one region
These fish live in deep waters near Australia, Tasmania, and New Zealand.
While other members of their fish family live in cold oceans around the world, true blobfish seem to exist only in this part of the South Pacific.
Because of this, they are quite rare and not often seen.
6. They are gentle eaters with no teeth
Blobfish do not hunt or bite. In fact, they have no teeth at all. They simply float above the ocean floor and wait for food to drift into their mouths.
This food is usually tiny bacteria or small sea creatures. They save energy by moving very little, which is smart in a place where food is hard to find.
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7. Mothers clean and guard their eggs
Female blobfish show surprising care for their young. Research on their fish family shows that mothers stay close to their eggs and clean them.
They gently remove sand and dirt so the eggs stay healthy. This kind of care is rare among deep-sea fish and is still not fully understood by scientists.
8. They were named the world’s ugliest animal
In 2013, the blobfish was voted the world’s ugliest animal by the Ugly Animal Preservation Society.
The vote took place at a science festival in the UK, where the blobfish beat other strange animals.
The goal was not to shame the fish, but to bring attention to lesser-known and endangered species.
9. Scientists know very little about them
Studying blobfish is extremely hard. They cannot survive when brought to the surface, which means scientists cannot observe them alive for long.
Most knowledge about blobfish comes from photos and accidental catches. Because of this, even basic facts, like how many exist or if they are endangered, remain a mystery.
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The blobfish may look strange to us, but it is a perfect example of how life adapts to extreme places. What seems ugly on land is actually a quiet success story from the deepest parts of the ocean.