Blob sculpin facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Blob sculpin
Scientific classification

The blob sculpin (Psychrolutes phrictus) is a fascinating deep-sea fish. It belongs to a family of fish called Psychrolutidae. This unique creature lives in the very deep parts of the ocean. It mainly eats small sea animals like crabs, snails, and sea pens.

You can find blob sculpins in the North Pacific Ocean. They live near the coasts of Japan, in the Bering Sea, and off California. When a female blob sculpin lays her eggs, the adult fish stay to protect them.

What Does a Blob Sculpin Look Like?

The blob sculpin can grow up to 70 cm (28 in) long. Its head is wide and flat. It has large eyes that are set far apart. Its mouth is curved with soft, fleshy lips.

This fish has no sharp spine in front of its operculum. The operculum is a bony flap that covers its gills. Its body is covered with many small, fleshy threads called cirri. These threads are found all over its head and body.

Behind its head, the body quickly gets narrower. There is a jelly-like layer between its skin and muscles. The top fin, called the dorsal fin, has eight spines. It also has nineteen to twenty soft rays. The fin underneath, the anal fin, has no spines and twelve to fourteen soft rays. Its side fins, called pectoral fins, are wide. In bigger fish, these fins have soft pads near their tips. The top part of the blob sculpin is grey or black. Its underside is pale, sometimes with faint spots.

Where Do Blob Sculpins Live?

The blob sculpin is found in the northeastern Pacific Ocean. It lives on or near the seabed. You can find them at depths from 500 to 2,800 m (1,600 to 9,200 ft). This is a very deep part of the ocean.

How Do Blob Sculpins Live?

Scientists have seen groups of blob sculpins using special underwater robots. These fish were found at depths between 1,300 and 3,000 m (4,300 and 9,800 ft). They were off the coast of California, near a place called the Gorda Escarpment.

Blob sculpins lay their sticky eggs on limestone-like rocks deep in the sea. They are known to guard their large, pinkish eggs in nests. The adult fish often lie on or touch the eggs. The eggs were clean, without any dirt. This suggests that the adult fish actively fan the eggs to keep them clean. This is the first time scientists have seen deep-sea fish that lay eggs taking care of their young.

Around these sculpins, scientists also saw octopuses from the Graneledone family. These octopuses were also guarding their eggs. About half of the octopuses were very close to an adult or breeding sculpin. At one spot, scientists saw 84 sculpins and 64 nests. They also saw many octopuses guarding their eggs. Researchers called this area a "reproductive hot spot." This means it's a special place where many animals come to have their babies.

The blob sculpin mainly eats small sea animals. These include sea pens, crustaceans (like crabs), and gastropod molluscs (like snails). They also eat other things like cephalopods (like squid), crinoids, sea cucumbers, and even other fish. Some of the fish they eat usually swim in open water. But scientists think these fish must have been swimming close to the seabed when eaten. This is because the blob sculpin is built to live on the ocean floor.

Blob sculpins can also have tiny skin parasites. These are small creatures that live on the fish. Examples include copepods like Chondracanthus yanezi and Neobrachiella amphipacifica.

See also

In Spanish: Chabolito para niños