Blobfish are real marine fish, but the familiar pink, drooping face is a poor guide to their appearance underwater. The name covers related species, not one animal with a single size, range or life history.
Which fish is the blobfish?
Blobfishes belong to the family Psychrolutidae, also called fathead sculpins. The famous specimen nicknamed Mr Blobby is Psychrolutes microporos, according to the Australian Museum, which holds it in its collection. It was collected during the 2003 NORFANZ expedition north-west of New Zealand.
Do not automatically label every blobfish photograph Psychrolutes marcidus. That is a different species. The North Pacific blob sculpin, Psychrolutes phrictus, is another relative, and observations about its breeding should carry its species name.
Why do blobfish look different underwater?
Their bodies have a soft, gelatinous layer beneath the skin. Water supports that tissue; sitting out of water allows it to sag under gravity. Museum researchers explain that the drooping face is chiefly a consequence of losing water support, rather than proof that the fish inflated or exploded during decompression. See Te Papa’s explanation by its fish researchers.
Blobfish also have bones and small teeth. They are not boneless jelly, and their muscles have not simply been replaced by fat. Photographs of a dead or preserved specimen should not be treated as an exact portrait of a living animal.
Where do blobfish live?
Location and depth depend on the species. The Australian Museum reports psychrolutids from the Atlantic, Indian and Pacific oceans, with records across the family spanning about 100–2,800 metres. That range does not mean every species occupies every depth or ocean.
Mr Blobby was caught in a trawl operating between 1,013 and 1,340 metres. Separately, Te Papa recorded a living P. microporos swimming at 900 metres. Its researchers report this species around New Zealand and Japan.
That underwater footage matters: it shows a blobfish swimming readily above the bottom. Describing all blobfish as motionless animals that can only wait buried in mud goes beyond the evidence.
What do blobfish eat?
They eat animal prey. The Australian Museum notes gastropods in some specimens’ stomachs, while Te Papa describes small gripping teeth and a large mouth capable of taking invertebrate prey, including deep-water sea anemones. Exact prey varies with species and habitat.
For a broader explanation of feeding categories, see our guide to herbivorous, carnivorous and omnivorous fish. A carnivorous diet alone does not reveal a fish’s hunting speed or behaviour.
What is known about reproduction?
MBARI researchers observed Psychrolutes phrictus guarding egg nests on the Gorda Escarpment off Northern California. Their remotely operated vehicle documented groups of these fish attending eggs on the seabed.
This is evidence for parental care in that species, not a complete breeding account for P. microporos or P. marcidus. Egg numbers, incubation periods and adult lifespan should not be supplied as universal blobfish facts. In particular, a confidently stated 130-year lifespan needs species-specific age evidence.
Egg guarding also occurs in unrelated fish, including some African cichlids, but similar behaviour does not mean their reproductive biology is interchangeable.
Can you keep a blobfish in a home aquarium?
Deep-water blobfish are not suitable home aquarium animals. Their habitat cannot be recreated with an ordinary chilled fish tank, and this article is not a care guide or buying recommendation. View research footage to see living animals in their environment rather than seeking a specimen for a domestic aquarium.
