Freaky Fish Friday - Rosy-Lipped Batfish (ogcocephalus porrectus)

This odd looking fish looks like it is ready for its "maybe it's Maybelline" close-up for smear-proof lipstick, but a beautiful model it is not. It definitely needs a shave. Today I present you with the Rosy-lipped Batfish (scientific name: ogcocephalus porrectus).

Maybe it's Maybelline...

Found in the waters of Cocos Island off the coast of Costa Rica, this bottom-dwelling fish can be found at depths ranging from 90 to 450 feet. Seen from above, it has been said to resemble more of a "frog fish roadkill" than a bat. Full-grown it is about the size of your open hand, nearly flat on top, and spreads its pectoral fins out to its sides. A slow and clumsy character, the rosy-lipped batfish uses its pectoral and pelvic fins like legs to crawl on the ocean floor rather than swim. Ichthyologist and batfish expert John McCosker says they prefer to “sit upright, like old tail-dragging airplanes.”

Is this batfish a unicorn?

It has a leathery skin that feels like sand paper and large spiny knobs covering its back. To add to its bizarre appearance, this fish has a unicorn-like horn protruding from its head. According to McCosker, this rostrum (a Latin word meaning "beak") is "firm - sort of like chicken gristle, and it protects a thin, retractable appendage that the batfish deploys to lure small edible fishes".

Rosy-lipped batfish are voracious eaters...

Rosy-lipped batfish are voracious, carnivorous eaters who prefer a diet consisting mainly of small fish, shrimps, mollusks and crabs. An interesting x-ray of a close relative to the rosy-lipped batfish shows just what they enjoy eating. Another close relative is the red-lipped batfish, also called the Galapagos batfish (Ogcocephalus darwini), so aptly named for its choice of residence.

Ogcocephalus corniger is found in the waters of the southeastern
United States and the eastern Gulf of Mexico.

Why this drag-queen-looking fish looks like it does, I don't know if anyone really knows. I didn't find any answers in my research. But does the rosy-lipped batfish remind you of anyone in your family?

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