10 Most Diabolical Fish On Earth
Tue, Mar 3, 2009
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Image via: wolaver
On the one hand, fish are inoffensive creatures, the majority not much to worry about unless they’re getting overcooked on the barbecue. Yet there are a few species that are more loathsome to our tastes. These are creatures straight out of nightmares – some more fangs than fish; others that look like they’ve barely swum out of the primeval sludge. But though we’d like to think we’re no relation to these demons of the deep, in the evolutionary scheme of things all us land vertebrates are derived from our fishy cousins.
Note: Sharks were omitted as we thought it unfair on the littler guys; the dorsal-finned ones deserve their own top ten. Otherwise, points were awarded for appearance, attitude, and aggression – with a partiality for nasty teeth and equally nasty names. Brace yourself.
1. Piranha Fish (up to 18 inches)
Image: Laura Travels
While the threat this little teeth-with-gills poses to humans has been rather blown up in films – including its own self-titled horror B movie – the Piranha has a set of jaws to make any dentist nod with nervous approval. Its rows of razor-sharp gnashers are tightly packed and interlock with each other, teeth perfectly designed for the rapid piercing and shearing of meat – for which the Piranha has a rapacious appetite, as if you needed to know. The Piranha is also aggressive to its own kind and can become cannibalistic if underfed.
Dentist’s bad dream: Piranha Fish
Image: Lee Nachtigal
Although the Piranha hunts in a lethal, highly organised fashion, in its defence it also eats vegetable matter such as seeds. Research also suggests its habit of forming into large groups is as much a defence against predators like caimans and river dolphins as it is a killing strategy. But despite its overblown menace – with the piranha more likely to end up as part of your dinner than vice versa – you wouldn’t want to spend too long in Amazonian waters with an open cut to whet this fish’s appetite. Feeding frenzies against larger animals do happen, and this fiend will bite and maim without a second invitation.
Red-bellied Piranha
Image: photochild
2. Anglerfish (up to 2 feet)
Image: tgerard2001
Fish don’t come much more monstrous looking than the deep sea Anglerfish. Lurking far below the surface of the ocean, this bony beast of a fish is so called because of its distinctive method of catching prey using a fleshy lump that protrudes from its head like a fisherman’s lure. The Anglerfish is able to cheekily wiggle its growth so it appears as prey to other predators, the bait made even more alluring by the fact that it emits bright bioluminescent light. When the unsuspecting victim stays close enough, the anglerfish devours it whole, jaws triggered automatically by contact with the decoy.
Gone fishing and gulping it down: Anglerfish
Image: thiiissideup
That cavernous mouth extends right around the Anglerfish’s head, its jaws armed with long, pointed, inward-folding teeth that allow easy access to the stomach but no escape from the mouth. This machine-like predator can expand its jaw and stomach to a huge size, enabling it to gulp down prey even bigger than itself. It’s probably a good thing for us that this fiend, also known as the sea devil, is found at depths of 3,300-6,600 ft. As far as we’re concerned, it can stay there.
Tiny deep-sea Anglerfish, stomach in mouth
Image: neilcreek
3. Moray Eel (up to 13 feet)
Image: bwraf
Found all over the world skulking in reef crevices – where it waits for prey to pass by near enough for it to lunge at and seize in its powerful jaws – the Moray Eel is a fish best steered clear of. This fearsome carnivore feeds on sea-dwelling creatures, but can also inflict severe injuries on people that get too close for comfort. Apparently the Moray is more often aloof than ill tempered, and will only attack humans in self-defence or bite hands by mistake if fed. When disturbed, however, it is vicious; and the bacteria coating its sharp backward-pointing teeth can infect wounds, making for an extra beastly bite. The toxic potential doesn’t stop there either, with the mucus secreted over the skin containing a toxin in some species.
Extra dentures and nasty mouthwash: Moray Eel
Image: vanveelen
Another feature that makes the Moray unique is the second set of jaws in its throat that are also equipped with teeth. When hunting and capturing victims, this nighttime marauder launches these jaws into its mouth, snatching the struggling prey and pulling it down into the Moray’s digestive system. Ridley Scott’s Alien eat your heart out.
Green Moray, apparently blind
Image: jormungund
4. Tigerfish (up to 6 feet)
Image: fotographyfun
No prizes for guessing some of the reasons the Tigerfish got its name. With a gaping maw made up of an extremely well developed mouth with protruding teeth, this definitely isn’t the kind of fish you’d like to meet in a dark corner of the river. The Tigerfish is just as ferocious as it looks – fiercely territorial and known for being a voracious predator.
Orthodontist’s nightmare: Tigerfish
Image: kingduck
The body of this fish is built for speed and power; and with its scaly armour, pointed fins, and conspicuous need for a brace even when its mouth is shut, the Tigerfiish is highly prized as a game fish. Found in freshwater across Africa, the Tigerfish will chomp on practically any fish that strays into its path using strong jaw muscles and dagger-like teeth that mesh together like the Piranha’s. It’s even reputed to take on prey as big or much bigger than itself; added reason to stay out of the water. Fishermen have a healthy respect for the Goliath Tigerfish, a monster uniquely adapted to the Congo River that the National Geographic recently described as an example of “evolution on steroids”. Make that evil-lution on steroids.
Fisherman’s fiend: Tigerfish
Image: B00M3R
5. Snakehead Fish (up to 3 feet)
Image via: environmentalgraffiti
Previously introduced in these columns when it was reported to have invaded Britain, the Snakehead fish can be one mean mother – quite literally as it’s thought to have attacked humans who have gone too close to its young. Widely distributed across South East Asia, parts of India and Africa, the giant tropical specimen boasts a fat mouth and sharp pointed teeth, and will eat just about everything in or on a body of water, be it fish, bird, amphibian or mammal.
Overrun by old iron lung: Snakehead Fish
Image via: popfi
If the Tigerfish is evolution gone berserk, then this is evolution that’s remained raw but no less brutal, the Snakehead having originated at least 50 million years ago. Yet the Snakehead is also like a living example of evolutionary adaptation; incredibly it uses a primitive lung and breathes atmospheric air. Yes, this sucker can survive on wet land for prolonged spells, crawling to the next pond or lake to resume feeding by wriggling its body and fins. It’s perhaps no surprise that this apex predator is a prime example of a dangerously invasive species that can wreak ecological havoc, spawning like wildfire and wiping out anything in its environment. You’ve been warned.
Northern Snakehead
Image: EdBrown05
6. Viperfish (up to 6 feet)
Image via: wolaver
Moving to the bottom five of our top ten, we come to the Viperfish, another predatory nasty with a snaky moniker. Rather like its bioluminescent buddy the Anglerfish, the Viperfish keeps to the ocean’s lower reaches. At night, though, this gruesome looking member the bottom feeding brotherhood swims to shallower depths of less than 700 feet where food is more available. Mercifully we wouldn’t fall into the F-word category were we ever to come face to face with the Pacific Viperfish – an extra large specimen that that may demonstrate deep-sea gigantism, reaching as long as 2 m. A relief to be sure, as the teeth protruding from that grim underbite look less than friendly – prey or not.
Grandma what big teeth you have: Viperfish
Image: Crappy Wildlife Photography
7. Fangtooth Fish (up to 6 inches)
Image: Diwan2000sa
Another cruel-faced deep-dwelling assassin, and one of the deepest-dwelling at that, the Fangtooth fish is found at murky depths as far as 5 km below the surface. Endowed with oversized fang-like teeth and a hefty jaw, the Fangtooth’s two largest lower fangs are so long the fish has a pair of sockets on either side of its tiny brain for the teeth to slot into when it shuts its mouth. The Fangtooth is actually thought to have the largest teeth of any ocean fish relative to its body size, though it needs to be able to grab any meal it can, even if larger than itself. Though haggard and scary in appearance, this fish is too small to be harmful to humans – unless it swims into your dreams.
Fangtooth preserved
Image of Fangtooth Fish: miss ruta
8. Dragonfish (up to 16 inches)
Image: clifftrobot
The deep-sea horrors continue, and the Dragonfish has the by know familiar outsized mouth and fang-like teeth that are hallmarks of the abyssal beasts we’ve seen – but, hey, they’ve got to eat, and anything encountered will do. The Dragonfish’s head seems to be all jaw and eyes, but unlike its relative the Viperfish, it has a barbel that dangles from its chin and emits light to attract unwary prey, rather like the lure of the Anglerfish. The Dragonfish might have swum further up our list if it weren’t for its bold bioluminescent beauty. Still, it leaves us in no doubt that it can be a ferocious predator that you definitely wouldn’t want getting primeval on you.
Shining light: Scaly Dragonfish
Image: MichaelStPatrick
9. Gulper Eel (up to 6 feet)
Image: Alexander Yean
With a mouth much larger than its body – a mouth that makes the word enormous seem too tiny – the Gulper Eel swims into our midst, whip-like tail in tow. This bizarre and terrifying looking creature also goes by the name of Pelican Eel, and that massive pouch of a lower jaw makes it easy to see why. The mouth is slack-hinged, and can be opened wide enough for the Gulper to swallow creatures much larger than itself, while the gut of this freaky fish also stretches so it can stomach large meals. But despite the size of the Gulper’s jaws, it has rather small teeth, suggesting a preferred diet of smaller fish. This monster inhabits depths thousands of feet down. A good job too, else we’d be the ones gulping – with fear.
Hard to swallow? Gulper Eel
Image: tobymiller
10. Conger Eel (up to 10 feet)
Image: Benthichi
Finally, moving to slightly less bottomless depths, its time to get up close and personal with the Conger Eel. It may not have as many fancy tricks up its crevice as its cousin the Moray, but with its great size and none too pretty chops, the carnivorous Conger Eel busts its way into the top ten. The American Conger, or sea eel, is known for being a particularly fierce game fish. Fronting up to you with a chunky head, wide mouth and strong teeth that could really do some damage, we definitely wouldn’t want to be fooling around with one of these bad boys – unless it was safely on our dinner plate.
Dare you do the conger? Conger Eel
Image: why I love life
Sources: 1, 2, 3, 4,5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23
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2 Trackbacks For This Post
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Los peces más extraños del planeta Says:
March 3rd, 2009 at 8:15 pm[...] Los peces más extraños del planeta www.environmentalgraffiti.com/featured/10-most-diabolical-fi… por thombjork hace pocos segundos [...]
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mental_floss Blog » Morning Cup of Links: Diabolical Fish Says:
June 22nd, 2009 at 4:12 pm[...] networking outlets that don’t exist, and shouldn’t. (via Lifehacker) * The Ten Most Diabolical Fish on Earth. They have names like dragon, snake, viper, tiger, and fangtooth, and they will haunt your [...]
March 3rd, 2009 at 6:08 pm
yuck. I won’t be eating fish and chips for lunch today!
March 3rd, 2009 at 8:44 pm
Amazing photos! My fav is the Scaly Dragonfish…
March 3rd, 2009 at 8:46 pm
fun list. i would add the wolf fish!
March 3rd, 2009 at 8:50 pm
OMG !!
looks like these fish can simply kill prey by scaring them !
March 3rd, 2009 at 8:55 pm
I will never look at goldfish the same again.
March 3rd, 2009 at 9:07 pm
The picture of the ‘Fangtooth Preserved’ is really an Anglerfish, just FYI
March 3rd, 2009 at 9:45 pm
Love it! The Tigerfish was scariest
March 3rd, 2009 at 9:49 pm
“littler” is not a word!
Should be ’smaller’.
March 3rd, 2009 at 10:25 pm
Obviously you don’t know the Candiru fish of the amazon, look it up and cringe.
March 3rd, 2009 at 10:43 pm
Fantastic post! Thanks, I enjoyed it a great deal.
March 4th, 2009 at 12:43 am
I love the pictures i would sooo not want to come face to face with one of those suckers!
March 4th, 2009 at 12:55 am
Gross. I’m never getting in the water again and will probably have nightmares tonight! lol
March 4th, 2009 at 12:59 am
Fangtooth kinda looked like DS9’s Morn.
March 4th, 2009 at 1:27 am
Awesome post…i once crapped out a tiger fish….it hurt. http://www.thedrunkcanuck.com
March 4th, 2009 at 3:46 am
Holy cow!!! I can’t believe there are that many ugly fish out there!!!
March 4th, 2009 at 3:53 am
Great list, but I would add the Goblin Shark. It can extend it’s teeth out of its mouth, Alien-style:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sZzehRHxtB8
Definitely more creepy than moray eels, which are kind of cuddly-cute when you get to know them. :)
Brian
March 4th, 2009 at 4:03 am
thnx… now i am afraid of water even more….
March 4th, 2009 at 4:39 am
Scary for sure, but if you really want to be scared, read up on the Needle Fish of the Amazon. Just thinking about them will make you cringe for months (or years) to come!
March 4th, 2009 at 4:45 am
there are Morays allover where I live. they slide back in their hole when you swim by
March 4th, 2009 at 4:54 am
………….
Excellent and terrible post @ the same time
March 4th, 2009 at 5:09 am
Very interesting! Great post.
definitely needs some proofreading though.
March 4th, 2009 at 7:19 am
those are some scary pics. But i want to add that snakehead fish southeast asia is a yummy fish and quite expensive to fork out.
March 4th, 2009 at 8:11 am
Placing the snakehead in any position other than #1 was a mistake. When they first started showing up in the States people were witnessing them eating pets and small deer.
March 4th, 2009 at 9:55 am
An Electric Eel would be much worse than any of these fish:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electric_eel
March 4th, 2009 at 12:51 pm
dude, you should definitely check out the toothpick fish. do a google. its tiny, translucent, slippery as hell, and goes up ur ass or worse, to feed on oxygenated blood.
March 4th, 2009 at 3:19 pm
I have to say, very interesting.. The Tiger Fish scares me the most.. Those teeth are huge nand could take a good chuck out of me..
March 4th, 2009 at 3:42 pm
looks like these fish can simply kill prey by scaring them !
March 4th, 2009 at 5:58 pm
Mamma mia quanto sono brutti questi pesci!!!
March 4th, 2009 at 7:40 pm
Yum, this makes me feeling like swimming… maybe… :D
March 4th, 2009 at 9:03 pm
Also, I’d suggest the Alligator Gar – name fits, but also the fish is a monster- looks like one and could potentially grow large enough to eat a human just like it’s namesake
If we’re judging by appearance as well, check out the Elephant fish – very dodgy
March 4th, 2009 at 10:35 pm
I noticed snakeheads on the list, and though the US isn’t among the places they’re supposed to inhabit, I’ve seen something much like them in Alabama. Around here they’re called ‘bowfin’, and they have the same sort of appearance. I wonder if they’re, perhaps, related. Friends of mine use to fish for them, and I even have a picture at home where my sister caught one that weighed 10+ lbs.
March 4th, 2009 at 10:54 pm
(-.-) they look very scary weirdly.i want to see nice fishes not scary ones but still they are cool and kind of good pics.one fish made me throw up…well i want to know about sharks there big, they have sharp teeth and they eat many fishes too.
March 5th, 2009 at 1:55 am
Those little punk fish, deep and scared…I suggest a new lineup of fish we see and care about. The snakehead makes the list–now apparently flourishing in the Potomac River watershed in and around Washington, DC. I’d take the morays, too, but the rest of them are all looks (thought I’ve heard the tigerfish is the real deal, and they jump.)
I suggest: Silver and Bighead carp, exotics in the Mississippi system, running to 20 kilos, who jump when disturbed so they have brained a number of unwary boaters.
Bluefish. Running 8 kilos, they chew up baitfish and then regurgitate so they can eat some more. Run in violent schools; often found along beaches and inlets where they interact with people. Bloodily.
Flathead Catfish Will go 35 kilos in the south, usually in river and large impoundments. All head. (larger species–white and blue–are not as scary.) Still, some of my kin are happy going in after them in logjams and undercut banks, grabbing them out by the lower jaw, mano-a-gato. Cool.
Muskellunge Upwards of 30 kilos. Knows no fear. Frequently takes hooked fish at boatside, eats them like an ear of corn, gives you the fin, and drifts off.
ice
March 5th, 2009 at 2:31 am
Bowfin (grindle) isn’t a snakehead. It’s a bowfin. Toothy, tenacious, but not a snakehead.
ice
March 5th, 2009 at 7:31 am
In response to:
“But though we’d like to think we’re no relation to these demons of the deep, in the evolutionary scheme of things all us land vertebrates are derived from our fishy cousins”.
You stand to be corrected…I for one, and the author of this fine little list are not even remotely related to any fish. God made us just as we are, and we’ve always been humans. We haven’t been around millions of years either as some other toothy creature. I do believe in evolution, but rather microevolution not macro. Furthermore, no sentence should start with “but”. Get some education before writing your next article, and try a little theology; It won’t kill you and it might even give you everlasting life. Afterall, if I derived from a fish…what’s the next mutation.
March 5th, 2009 at 7:45 am
That Angler Fish looks just like the “JRR Tolkien – Orc Species”
March 5th, 2009 at 8:19 am
time to get a pool
March 5th, 2009 at 8:16 pm
Creepy! I was expecting to see alligator gar also.
http://www.mosportsmen.com/fishing/gatorgar/mouthone.jpg
March 6th, 2009 at 12:14 am
How about the stonefish, Synanciea verrucosa? It’s the most venomous fish in the world. Your dead in 2 hours if your stung, and for that 2 hours you’ll probably wish you were dead because of the ungodly pain. I think this fish should have made the countdown a least…. just my 2 cents
March 6th, 2009 at 5:56 am
Wow, those are some creepy beasts, but how come Abe Vigoda didn’t make the list?
March 6th, 2009 at 9:59 am
Dude you forgot the scariest fish of all. The pecker fish. It is a subspesies akin to the catfish but it feeds on nitrogenis waste. It can swim into a human urethra and then anchor itself with the spines on its fins.
March 6th, 2009 at 7:38 pm
The stomach in mouth pic HAS to be the worst !
March 6th, 2009 at 8:40 pm
I don’t believe ANY nonhuman animal (fish or otherwise) can be classified as “diabolical.” Frankly, I am fed up and appalled by the number of TV programs whose sole aim is to frighten people about nature. Just think about the titles of programs–things along the lines of “The Fury of Mother Nature” or “Killer Beasts of the Jungle.” Stuff like this presents the normal workings of nature as a freak show, and the natural, instinctive behavior of animals as somehow psychopathic. Give me a break! No nonhuman animal ever built gas chambers or atom bombs or napalm. We need to focus on our own ethical shortcomings and leave the animals out of it.
March 6th, 2009 at 11:09 pm
And that is why I am freakin terrified of the ocean
March 14th, 2009 at 10:27 pm
Im not denying the fantastic information in this post but when writing on subjects such as this it should be avoided incriminating the animals. They already have a hard time as it is without people thinking they have intentions behind their actions. “cruel-faced deep-dwelling assassin”. Incriminating creatures leads to people being misled and thats how they get targetted. Sharks have suffered because people have misled their nature. Becareful how you word things.
March 17th, 2009 at 4:29 pm
oh my lord what is this stuff but it is fun
March 17th, 2009 at 4:31 pm
ho my god this world is crazy
May 12th, 2009 at 4:07 am
Awesome picture, will not get into any water or even go in a small boat anymore.
May 15th, 2009 at 10:55 pm
Oh Man…I really don’t like the look of that TigerFish, no way!
May 19th, 2009 at 9:02 am
Very cool list, but you missed the ‘most evil’ of all fish (other than sharks). A 20lb. Bluefish would slice and dice any other fish on this list. Pound for pound, no fish on Earth, not even Piranhas, are even close to being as ferocious, deadly, and effective at killing than the Bluefish (even solo). Even the Tiger Fish would have no chance against a Bluefish half its size. The Eels would be bitten in half and would have to fight with half a body. Bluefish may not “look” as cool, but looking diabolical, and actually being diabolical are two totally different things. Good list, but you missed “Numero Uno”. Any fisherman or diver will tell you that.
May 26th, 2009 at 6:39 am
No great white shark? Sharks are still fish right?
June 8th, 2009 at 9:48 pm
It is very difficult to starve your fish, but very easy to overfeed it. If the food falls to the bottom of bowl you are overfeeding. In a bowl if you overfeed 2 or 3 times in a week you could kill your fish. We recommend you feed your fish every other day once a day. Pellet food will float longer than flakes but either type will work.
June 9th, 2009 at 1:05 am
What about the small catfish from the amazon that swims up your pee hole.It has spikes on its back so once it goes in you cant just pull it back out.Oh, and its attracted to urine so dont pee in the river.
June 13th, 2009 at 12:14 am
Your ‘perserved fangtooth’ image is another anglerfish.
June 24th, 2009 at 2:27 am
the lamprey is missing:
http://www.visserijbedrijfklop.nl/images/zeeprik.jpg
horrific fish…
July 1st, 2009 at 9:11 pm
Great article, really enjoyed reading it and the pictures, I remember reading about the Viper fish from a National Geographic magazine when I was a kid and thinking it was the scariest fish when I was little.
August 3rd, 2009 at 9:43 pm
Nope the Candiru is the worst most diabolical fish on earth.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QQWgUht-ObI
September 5th, 2009 at 11:46 am
Great list. Just to add: if you should ever find yourself with a limb in a Moray Eel’s mouth, you need to kill it and break its jaws to get your limb back. The jaws clench, even after death.
October 19th, 2009 at 6:49 pm
http://www.fotosdepesca.com.br/fotos/9209
October 29th, 2009 at 12:17 am
The Candiru is way more diabolical than all the fish on this list put together. All the fish on the list either look weird, or have badass fangs. That one thing that I will not repeat here that the candiru is famous for? Now thats just cruel.
November 17th, 2009 at 9:49 pm
I noticed that #1 is a Piranha. I was shocked I did not see pariah on the list since they eat Piranha in South America. they are mean.
November 18th, 2009 at 12:57 pm
Very Very Good collections!!!
December 16th, 2009 at 5:14 am
I so want a tank full of goliath tigerfish! I think 10,000 gallons would be appropriate. Any uncooked dinner scraps would never go to waste.
December 20th, 2009 at 1:57 pm
Why people consider sharks to be dangerous, when it is obvious that there are so many beasts out there.
December 25th, 2009 at 11:27 am
Dangerous fish beware when you eat then you might face problem coz you are kill it for your enjoy
January 1st, 2010 at 5:52 pm
Yeah, they are all scary except one.
For some reason, I find the conger eel kinda cute… From the safety of a picture, that is.
January 3rd, 2010 at 11:08 pm
Wow! Thanks for sharing, I’d heard of or seen some of these fish, but never the tigerfish. Very impressive, that one’s a monster. I’m surprised it hasn’t graced the big screen in it’s very own starring role.
January 21st, 2010 at 7:00 am
nice!!! btw, the anglerfish we usually see are females… the males are much smaller and less dominant… they attach themselves to females and become part(s) of the females’ body to mate… that’s the life of a male anglerfish… ultimate mate!! :) cheers…
February 8th, 2010 at 8:51 pm
i LOVE all these fish they r sooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo Kool. imagen that they r swimming under your feet then they eat you