Whether it's the ocean, sea, river or lake - the depths of the water are full of unknown and interesting things. No matter how actively the aquatic environment is studied by modern scientists, many of its inhabitants still remain a big mystery for mankind and amaze us with their unusual appearance. We present to your attention the rating the most unusual fish in the world with photos and description.
10. Deciduous sea dragon (Phycodurus eques)
The first question that most readers will have is what is it? The deciduous sea dragon belongs to the seahorse family. He is also called the rag-picker because of his unusual rag-like body. However, it also looks like a dragon due to its curvature.
The leaf dragon is a completely harmless animal - the maximum it can do is hide in the seaweed and disguise itself as it. Unusual one of the most beautiful fish in the world it is also conditioned by its nutrition - the "dragon" simply sucks in all the small fish and shrimps around it, so often various algae and even garbage get into its mouth.
9. Bigmouth or pelican fish (Saccopharyngoidei)
Another mysterious creature in our ranking is the pelican fish. Its name is explained by a huge stretching pharynx, more reminiscent of a pelican's beak bag. This fish is unusual in that, unlike most of its relatives, it does not have scales, a swimming fin, and a bone skeleton.
The body of the bigmouth is supported by cartilage and two deformed bones, so it looks more like a snake body. It is worth noting that despite their decent size, these fish are very lightweight.
8. Barrel-eye (Macropinna microstoma)
This strange fish with a transparent head has been little studied to date, therefore it is of great interest. Any attempts by scientists to get the barrel-eye out of the water ended in failure - the fish's head simply burst upon contact with air. However, thanks to deep-sea devices, it was still possible to draw some conclusions about the characteristics of this fish.
Barrel eyes are very inactive and can “freeze” in one place for a long time. Their eyes are inside the head and allow you to see everything that is above the fish, even when it is swimming in a horizontal direction. This unusual eye structure is of great service to her when hunting.
7. Tiger goliath fish (Hydrocynus goliath)
As you probably already guessed, this unusual fish got its name due to the gigantic size for which the great warrior Goliath was famous. Why brindle - because on the sides of its body there are large dark stripes.
Goliath fish is one of the most dangerous predators Congo river. In terms of bloodlust, it can be compared to piranhas. She can also attack humans and sometimes even crocodiles. In Africa, fishing for this fish is extremely popular among the locals.
6. Drop fish (Psychrolutes marcidus)
The drop fish is very strange in appearance and one of the the most unusual animals on the planet... We can say that it, however, does not look like a fish at all.It is called a drop because of the bizarre "drip" shape of the torso, sad eyes and a large drooping nose.
The color of this fish changes depending on the environmental conditions in which it lives. It mostly hides in corals or moves slowly along the bottom on its two fins. By the way, drop fish can be very heavy and gain up to 10 kilograms.
5. Black dragon fish (Idiacanthus)
Despite its small size, the black dragonfish is a fierce deep-sea predator. It has an oblong, curved body and sharp teeth. The peculiarity of this fish lies in the fact that it has a source of red light under its eyes, which perfectly illuminates its path in the dark ocean waters.
The body of deep-sea fish is often littered with photophores, and in this case, the dragonfish is no exception. With their glow, males attract females during the mating period, and the glowing process under the lower jaw is an excellent bait for prey.
4. Fish-Silver Steam Train (Takifugu rubripes)
This strange fish is a type of puffer fish, the most poisonous creatures on the planet... The thing is that her skin and all reproductive organs contain a highly toxic poison that can poison not only humans, but also those around it.
Any contact with this fish leads to complete paralysis of all organs and, as a result, death from suffocation. Fish-Silver steam locomotive is a huge danger today - because of warming, it got from the Pacific Ocean to the Red and Mediterranean Seas and is actively "colonizing" new territories.
3. Tripod fish (Bathypterois grallator)
This fish really strongly resembles a tripod or tripod, so its name is absolutely justified. With a relatively small body, the "tripod" has long beams, reaching over a meter in length. Long fins allow it to hold firmly on the bottom even against the current, and also act as tentacles: the fish easily reach their prey with them.
Interesting fact: the tripod fish is hermaphrodite. If the individual does not find a mating partner, it will lay eggs on its own. There are not many animal species in the world capable of immaculate conception.
2. Fish Anabas (Anabas testudineus)
Unlike the previous participants in the rating, Anabas does not have an unusual appearance: it does not glow in the dark and does not have meter-long fins. However, it can rightfully be called one of the strangest and most unusual fish in the world. The thing is, this fish just loves ... climbing trees.
Hard fins with hard scales on land act as legs and allow Anabas to climb rocks and trees. Anabas lives in fresh water: it settles in rivers, small lakes and, no matter how wild it sounds, in rice fields.
1. Psychedelic frog fish (Histiophryne psychedelica)
The most unusual feature of this fish is its movement style. Like a jet engine, it inflates and pushes water through the gills with all its might. Thus, it resembles a frog galloping on the ocean floor, or a tennis ball. And she also has paws, which also help in moving along the bottom.
The Psychedelic Fish has no scales, so the thick mucus that envelops its entire body helps protect it from scratches. Another unusual feature of this mysterious creature is its bright striped coloration.