Top 10 hideously ugly fish

The world of fish is full of creatures of great beauty. However, there is a darker side where form follows function and aesthetics don't get a look in.

A good number of these monstrosities come from the oceans depths where the light of day never reaches – thankfully.

The ugliest fishes on the planet

Angler fish (Melanocetus johnsoni)

Angler fish (pictured above) in all their varied forms have to find a place in this list somewhere. When the majority of your kind look like an experiment gone wrong. They look like the result of hybridising porcupines, man traps and deflated footballs to me. With this appearance, you're seldom going to win any prizes in a beauty contest.

Now there are some more attractive species of anglerfish out there. Plus, it hardly helps when these poor deep sea anglerfish are usually only pictured dead. I mean, most of us would not look at our best if the reverse happened to us. Never the less, the majority of these fish are the stuff of nightmares.

Related article: Weird fish of the week: Kroyer's deep-sea angler fish

Roughback batfish (Ogcocephalus parvus)

In the same order as the anglers, comes this beauty - the roughback batfish. While, these fish may not be in the same horror show category as its relatives, they certainly aren't pretty. It looks like it should have a good shave before it tries make-up again.

Blob sculpin (Psychrolutes phrictus)

These were always going to be here somewhere - just plain ugly - no wonder they look so depressed. If Helen of Troy was the face that "launched a thousand ships" - then this probably sank them.

Wolf eel (Anarrhichthys ocellatus)

The Wolf eel generally spends much of its time hiding in caves and crevices. One quick look at this fish is all you need to see why they might not want to show their face too often.

Giant grenadier (Albatrossia pectoralis)

Another one of those deep sea fish best left in darkness, two miles down.

Sand diver lizard fish (Synodus intermedius)

This fish almost seems to know it's no oil painting. It spends much of its time buried in sand with just its eyes visible waiting to ambush unwary prey. I suspect these fish could be just as successful if it smiled at them, to be honest.

Goblin shark (Mitsukurina owstoni)

What comes to mind when you think of sharks - sleek, streamlined predators cutting through the sea like a knife? Well, I suppose we can't blame the goblin shark just because evolution had a different plan for it.

The long snout may look unattractive to us but it plays a crucial role in their ability to hunt. The electroreceptors that cover this snout enable prey detection within the dark depths of the ocean.

Indian spiny turbot (Psettodes erumei)

Flatfish are seldom pretty, but the Indian spiny turbot, is among the least lovely. I'm not aware of any trees in the world's oceans. However, judging by its face this fish found an ugly tree of huge proportions. It swam its way to the top and hit every branch on it as it fell down.

Be thankful this is just an etching - you don't want to see a photograph.

Dog-toothed characin, (Hydrolycus armatus)

Just in case you thought it's only marine fish that have beauty issues here's a stunner from freshwater. In the family Cynodontidae, or dog-toothed characins, they have a problem with teeth it seems. The problem appears to be they borrowed them from a sabre-toothed tiger. Despite the fact these sharp teeth don't fit in their mouth, and they haven't given them back.

Parrot cichlid

All the above fish are at least as nature intended, unlike the poor blighter which is my final choice. Parrot fish are a hybrid of uncertain origin - bloated with deformed spines, usually unable to shut their own mouth. This creates the illusion that these fish are always smiling, and when combined with bright colours make these popular tropical fish.

Just to put the icing on the cake people sometimes dye or tattoo them. Which can cause the fish severe pain, discomfort or even early mortality. They do show however ugly to our eyes nature makes things - we can make them worse.

Related article: Parrot cichlids- to be cherished or avoided? 

This is an item from the Practical Fishkeeping website archives.