'World's Ugliest Animal' Exhibited At Japan's Fukushima Aquarium

An aquarium in Japan holds the dubious distinction of displaying what was dubbed “the world’s ugliest creature.” Aquamarine Fukushima in Iwaki exhibited the blobfish, an amorphous, deep sea creature that looks exactly like its name would suggest.

Having a blobfish specimen on display is rare because they inhabit the deep ocean and rarely make it to the surface alive. The 23-inch creature at the aquarium was accidentally captured in mid-May by a fisherman off the coast of Rausu, Hokkaido, at a depth of 2,460 to almost 4,000 feet, the Japan Times reported Wednesday.

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In a nod to its natural habitat, the fish spends most of its time in the darkness at the bottom of the tank.

“I want it to look this way because it’s cute,” Iori Kido, a 2-year-old visitor to the aquarium, told the Japan Times Tuesday.

The blobfish was given the honor of being named the world’s ugliest animal in 2013 by the Ugly Animal Preservation Society. CNN called it a “cross between the cartoon character Ziggy and an anemic lump of jelly.” The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration described the creature as a “big, blobby tadpole, just a mass of pale, jelly-like flesh with puffy, loose skin, a big nose and beady, staring eyes.” At least one person likened it to their uncle Walter.

The fish typically spend their time bobbing in the depths: they’re usually found at depths of 2,000 to 4,000 feet. Their amorphous features can be attributed to those extreme depths.

“Unlike most other fish, the ones that live in these depths don’t have gas-filled cavities like swim bladders that would collapse under the extreme pressure,” said Henry Reich of Minute Earth. “In fact, super-deep water fish often have minimal skeletons and jelly-like flesh, because the only way to combat the extreme pressure of deep water is to have water as your structural support.”

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The creatures are typically found mainly off the coast of southeastern Australia and Tasmania. And because they inhabit such deep waters, relatively little is known about them. Blobfishes are actually endangered because, while not edible themselves, the creatures are often caught up in bottom trawl fishing nets.

“Some would describe it as a bit ugly,” said actor Paul Foot, who supported the blobfish in the Ugly Animal Preservation Society’s ugly animal contest. “But I think the sad face of the blobfish belies a kind and very wise little brain in there.”