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Today on Animal Fact Files we’re discussing blobfish. You can subscribe to the channel to learn more about other strange animals! Blobfish belong to a genus of fish that contains about ten other species. This group of fish are sometimes called fathead sculpins… and you can probably guess why. Blobfish themselves have quite the reputation because they look rather… soggy... when out of the water, but really when they’re in the water, they almost look like a regular fish. Not that… that… means anything... What sets blobfish - and the fathead sculpins in general - apart from other fish has a lot to do with where they live. Most blobfish live in the depths of the ocean. Some species have been found further than a mile (1.61km) below the ocean’s surface. At these depths, there is a lot of pressure so blobfish have anatomy that differs from a fish that doesn’t go that deep. For starters, blobfish don’t have a swim bladder. Most fish that live closer to the surface have a swim bladder which is basically just a gas-filled sac that helps a fish control its buoyancy. If blobfish had swim bladders they would implode, so instead their bodies are blobby and have a density that is slightly less than water, so they kind of just float along the bottom of the ocean. Think something kind of like a human walking on the moon. This floating lifestyle is perfect for the blobfish because they are sit and wait predators. Most of their life consists of hanging out on the seafloor and sucking in prey as it passes by. At least, that’s what we think anyway. Animals that live that deep in the ocean aren’t exactly easy to study, and most of what we know about blobfish comes from the dead ones brought up in fishing nets.

Something we do know from studying them in their natural environment is that they lay large masses of eggs on top of deep sea plateaus in areas with warmer water temperatures. These warmer temperatures could help the eggs develop more quickly, though different species have been observed to develop at different speeds. They also seem to favor rocky places to which the eggs can more easily attach. The blobfish is a good parent and seems to stick by its egg clutch while the eggs develop, and it’s possible that a blobfish may lay upwards of 100,000 eggs in a single nest. This is probably when they’re most vulnerable to hungry animals, and we otherwise aren’t sure if blobfish even have any predators. It’s possible they don’t, and it’s also possible they live a long time - like, 100 or more years long! Yup, there are probably blobfish chillin’ on the bottom of the ocean right now who are twice as old as you. Though, the average human being is probably twice as tall as the average blobfish is long. They can reach more than two feet (60.96cm) in length, though certain species may not even reach half a foot (15.24cm). When they come up to the surface they actually puff up to larger than they would be in the abyss because all that pressure they’re used to doesn’t occur on dry land. That’s part of why they look so gelatinous when they’re up here. This blobby form has helped to land them the title of the world’s ugliest creature - though I think some people would contest that because these guys even have plushies made after them!

Unlike many other fish, blobfish don’t have scales either. They have skin. Loose, flabby skin. They sort of look like big tadpoles. Blobfish are also usually the same color throughout their bodies, though some species might have spots. For the most part, blobfish have only been observed in the Pacific, Indian, and Atlantic oceans in the northern hemisphere - though it’s guessed they may live in many places we have yet to discover - there just isn’t as much opportunity to watch blobfish as there is something like… I dunno… squirrels.

For more facts on blobfish, check out the links in the description. What do you think of these crazy fish? Tell us in the comments! Give a thumbs up for strange animals, and thank you for watching Animal Fact Files!