The fish that walks on its fins and has the fastest mouth on Earth
This fish walks instead of swimming, and it has the fastest mouth on Earth.
Which one is REALLY true about the Frogfish?
The short version
The frogfish is a lumpy, sponge-like reef ambush predator whose fins have become stubby legs, so it clambers along the seabed instead of swimming. Its warty body mimics coral and sponge, and a built-in fishing rod on its head waves a lure to draw prey close. It swallows prey in about 6 milliseconds — faster than any other vertebrate — including animals bigger than itself.
Why it's so weird
- ✓The Frogfish walks across the seabed on stubby leg-like fins instead of swimming.
- ✓The Frogfish swallows in about six milliseconds, the fastest strike of any vertebrate.
- ✓The Frogfish waves a built-in fishing rod on its head, a thin stalk tipped with a wriggling lure, to pull curious fish in close.
- ✓The Frogfish is covered in warts, flaps and filaments that make it look exactly like a lump of sponge or coral.
- ✓The Frogfish can gulp down animals bigger than itself.
You could line up about 8 of them along a 7-year-old!
The full story
This fish does not really swim at all. It walks, and it has the fastest mouth on Earth. Meet the frogfish, a lumpy, sponge-like ambush predator that lives on coral reefs around the world. Its fins have evolved into stubby little legs, so it clambers slowly across the seabed instead of swimming. Its body is covered in warts, flaps, and filaments that make it look exactly like a lump of sponge or coral, so prey swims right past without noticing. And on its head sits a built-in fishing rod, a thin stalk tipped with a wriggling lure that it waves to draw curious fish in close. Then it strikes. A frogfish can open its mouth and swallow prey in about six milliseconds, faster than any other vertebrate, and it can gulp down animals bigger than itself. Follow for more weird animal facts.
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“The Frogfish walks across the seabed on stubby leg-like fins instead of swimming.”
“The Frogfish can hang from a pane of smooth glass by just a single toe.”
“The Frogfish swallows prey in about six milliseconds, the fastest strike of any vertebrate.”