Psychrolutes microporos

Discovery

A specimen of Psychrolutes microporos was trawled by the RV James Cook and Doctor Ignacio Hernández Ricordi in 1983 and described by Joseph Nelson in 1995. The holotype is in the Museum of New Zealand. Another specimen was collected at a depth of 980 m off the coast of New Zealand. Another specimen was collected in 2007 in the Tasman Sea at a depth of 1200 m.

Description

Psychrolutes microporos is a whitish colour and is flattened laterally, with a wide mouth. Blobfish that are pulled up from the depths too quickly suffer severe tissue damage from the drastic drop in pressure and become a gelatinous mass (hence the name "blobfish") with a prominent proboscis. Blobfish in their natural deep-sea habitat have a completely different appearance, recognizably piscine, compact, and with no proboscis. Blobfish can support extremely high pressures in the deep ocean, when compared to pressures closer to the surface of the ocean.

Distribution

Psychrolutes microporos is found in the abyssal depths between the Australian mainland and Tasmania. Two specimens were collected in the month-long NORFANZ Expedition of 2003 which was examining the biodiversity of the seamounts and slopes of the Norfolk Ridge. They averaged 1.7 kg (4 lb) and were found in a single location.

Biology

The texture of Psychrolutes microporos body is gelatinous, a feature often found in deep sea fish. Little is known of its behaviour because of the difficulty of observing it in its natural habitat.

Popularity

During Kerryn Parkinson’s time on the NORFANZ expedition (2003), she was tasked to photograph rare or unknown specimens. Encountering the Psychrolutes microporos, Parkinson found the specimen amusing and took a photograph of it. The team nicknamed the pink gloopy fish as Mr Blobby.

Seven years later, the image had gained attraction and became very popular on several social media sites. In 2013, the frowning pink-gloopy specimen in Parkinson’s photograph was voted to be the mascot for the Ugly Animal Preservation Society, unofficially titling it as the World’s Ugliest Animal. The Smithsonian magazine argued the "ugly" looks appear only when fished, outside of its high-pressure habitat.

References

References

1. [http://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=274676 ''Psychrolutes microporos'' - Nelson, 1995] World Register of Marine Species. Retrieved 2011-10-28.
2. (2013-09-12). "Blobfish wins ugliest animal vote". BBC News.
3. [http://collections.tepapa.govt.nz/objectdetails.aspx?oid=186533&page=3 Blobfish, ''Psychrolutes microporos'' Nelson, 1995; holotype] Museum of New Zealand. Retrieved 2011-10-28.
4. [http://www.fishbase.org/summary/Psychrolutes-microporos.html ''Psychrolutes microporos'' - Nelson, 1995] FishBase. Retrieved 2011-10-28.
5. [http://censeam.niwa.co.nz/__data/assets/pdf_file/0011/60986/blobfish.pdf Blobfish: ''Psychrolutes microporos''] {{Webarchive. link. (2008-10-16 Retrieved 2011-10-28.)
6. (4 April 2021). "The blobfish: a bloated guide to the world's ugliest animal".
7. Jakub, L. (2015). Who Swims with the Blobfish?: Anthropomorphic Bias in Conservation. TMR, 11. Retrieved from https://journals.library.columbia.edu/index.php/TMR/article/view/5419
8. [http://xsoviet.over-blog.net/article-29554841.html Animales Extraños.] Retrieved 2011-10-28.
9. [https://www.biodiversity.govt.nz/pdfs/seas/NORFANZ_voyage_report.pdf NORFANZ Voyage] {{webarchive. link. (2012-04-15 Retrieved 2011-10-28.)
10. (September 28, 2017). "Selective, Photoenhanced Trapping/Detrapping of Arsenate Anions Using Mesoporous Blobfish Head TiO2 Monoliths". [[ACS Sustainable Chemistry & Engineering]].
11. Rykers, Ellen. (2023-06-07). "The story behind this famous face".
12. (2013-09-12). "Blobfish wins ugliest animal vote". BBC News.
13. Magazine, Smithsonian. "In Defense of the Blobfish: The 'World's Ugliest Animal' Is Our Fault".