Meet the world’s ‘furriest’ fish

By Dan Lewis 10 November 2020
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Of all the fish you could meet in the waters of Australia, this angler is a world record holder.

Imagine you’re a fish, just for a moment if you will. And you’ve spotted an appertising-looking morsel floating in the water before you. Eyes bulging (you’re a fish remember) you fin forward. You can almost taste the juicy goodness. And then… bam! You’re snapped up. The unsuspecting hunter becomes, well, dinner.

This scene plays out in the waters surrounding Australia on the reg thanks to the striate anglerfish, an ambush predator with a very long lure that resembles a marine worm.

This ‘hairy’ hunter, measuring up to 22 cm and with zebra-like markings in a variety of colourways that match its surroundings, is one contender for the ‘furriest’ fish title in the Guinness World Records 2021 book. Its skin is covered in long filamentous appendages that resemble hairs.

Packed with thousands of incredible achievements, the Guinness World Records 2021 book is now available and also includes the ‘furriest’ crustacean (the yeti lobster, Kiwa hirsuta) and the ‘furriest’ frog, the male hairy frog, Trichobatrachus robustus, aka the horror or Wolverine frog (pictured below), which breaks its own bones to produce claws… yes seriously.

Male hairy frogs grow threads of vascularised skin during mating season. image credit: Gustavocarra/Creative Commons License

Craig Glenday, Editor-in-Chief, Guinness World Records says: “This year’s book has been compiled in the most extraordinary of circumstances. Halfway through writing it, the world was turned upside down by COVID-19, but despite lockdowns and quarantines, it’s not stopped people from breaking records at home or on social media. So you can expect the usual mix of awesome achievements, incredible human bodies and the latest from the worlds of science, sport, gaming, music and movies.

“Lockdown has also meant that this year’s theme – Discover Your World – has also taken on an added dimension, as we’re able to take readers on a record-breaking journey of discovery from their local neighbourhoods to the far reaches of the solar system, all from the safety of their armchairs.”

Its ever-expanding pool of international consultants and experts help make sense of the world and the cosmos beyond. 2021’s voyage through the vast panorama of record-breaking includes 12 fact-packed chapters covering:
• Travel through the Solar System and see the planets come to life with a free augmented-reality feature
• Encounter the cutest, weirdest, most dangerous and exotic creatures on our home planet
• Meet the world’s tallest, shortest, hairiest humans
• Marvel at the latest high scores, speed runs and players at the top of their
game in eSports and beyond
• Get the lowdown on the world’s most successful and prolific actors, musicians, TV stars and influencers
• Review the greatest sports achievements from the past year and
celebrate today’s top athletes.

Grab your copy of Guinness World Records 2021 here.