Galapagos Red Lipped Batfish – Ogcocephalus darwini
Friday flew by, and I didn’t find an opportunity to share a funny fish face. So here it is, a day late.
And what a very strange fish this is. This species of batfish is specific to the Galapagos Islands. I found this one in fairly deep water (about 90 feet), in Chimney Bay at Wolf Island. Like the Flying Gunard that I shared last week, this Red-Lipped Batfish is more a “walking” fish than a swimming fish. It is a very inept swimmer, and instead bumbles along the bottom, using those two modified pectoral fins to do the “walking” for it.
After I found and photographed the fish above (whose bright red lips really don’t “pop” until lit by strobe or flashlight), I found another batfish and photographed it. This one apparently went out without putting on its makeup ;^) Seriously, I have no idea if this is a juvenile or a variation on the species.
These fish were about 12 inches long.
About Judy G Diver
Born and raised on the west coast of Canada, I have always felt a strong connection to the sea. But for many years, I stayed on the surface, afraid of what lurked down deep. When I was in my early 30's, with three young children (aka the P's), my husband (aka Mr G) signed us up for a SCUBA certification course, as a surprise. Although I had my fears, my stubbornness prevailed, and somehow I made it through four murky, frigid, cold water dives in Vancouver to successfully pass the course. Soon after we went diving off the west coast of Mexico, in the Sea of Cortez, where my eyes were opened to the beauty and other-worldliness of the life down under.
And the rest, as they say, is history.
I currently have well over 2000 dives under the belt, and I have been fortunate to travel and dive in Indonesia, Thailand, Australia, Fiji, Palau, Philippines, Galapagos, Costa Rica, Hawaii, California, Egypt, Mexico, several islands in the Caribbean, and here in British Columbia.
In addition to this blog and my personal website (Awoosh.com/Directory), which is linked at the top of the blog, my stuff has been published in a variety of magazines and websites, including a regular monthly feature for Scubadiving Magazine for several years. All links to this work can be found in this blog.
