Typically from the Pacific, the psychedelic frogfish has stripes that are arranged in beautiful patterns like fingerprints, and it has a wide range of hallucinogenic colors. With an estimated 1,000 species, the fish is also assumed to have depth perception due to its flat face.
At 36 cm in length, the Tassled scorpionfish is an aesthetically unappealing aquatic predator. Even people who are unlucky enough to step on a Tassled scorpionfish should expect a severe injury that could be fatal because this fish has ray fins with venomous spines.
Because it doesn't like to swim, the Handfish is an extremely strange, bottom-dwelling fish that walks on its pectoral and pelvic fins. Australia is home to the now-endangered handfish, of which there are eight species total, five of which are restricted to Tasmania and the Bass Strait.
In 2013, the appropriately named blobfish took home the unenviable title of being the ugliest animal in the world. The smooth-headed, wretched-looking fish lives in the deep waters off the coastlines of Tasmania and mainland Australia.
The name of the sheepshead wrasse comes partly from the old English phrase meaning "old woman." Originating from the western Pacific Ocean, the fish features an almost cartoonishly exaggerated face with a prominent chin and a bulging forehead.
The fish specimen, which looks awful, has a mottled appearance that resembles a severe case of acne. Because of its expanded stomach, the Pacific-dwelling frogfish may consume prey that is much larger than itself.
The name of this strange-looking monster is obviously taken from the way it looks, with lengthy protrusions that resemble leaves appearing to grow from all over its body.
The remarkable colors of its skin and teeth linked in a structure like a beak are what give the parrotfish its name. Parrotfish, who are closely related to wrasse, are widely distributed in and near the tropical reefs found in every ocean on Earth.
With its striking stripes and graceful pectoral fins, the stunning Red lionfish possesses many of the characteristics of nature that alert other fish to their presence. This is due to the Lionfish's potent venom, which is administered by up to 18 needle-like dorsal fins.