In 1993, Coca Cola released an ad called “Northern Lights”, featuring polar bears. What came after was one of Coca Cola’s most recognizable campaigns. The campaign still runs ads to this day, and even produced a short film in 2012. But why choose polar bears? Of course, polar bears are iconic creatures. But, the true reason is more visceral, more primal to human nature. People love cute. We pay for cute furry friends all the time. Our pets come on planes, our children love stuffed animals, and a multitude of characters and mascots are lovable animals. Take, for example, our very own Nittany Lion. The polar bear ads tapped into this human connection with cuteness just as much as it tapped into our pocketbooks. Perhaps most importantly, polar bear conservation burst into the limelight.

But not everyone can be a polar bear.

Thousands of plain and downright repulsive animals struggle for survival in the same rapidly changing world as cute animals. But with less love and affection, these crucial species dwindle and die without human society skipping a beat. I hope in this blog to support the animals that the world too often forgets: those who may not be superstar cuddly bears, but are cornerstones of their ecological niches all the same. So come along with me to laugh, smirk, and sometimes gag at a few of Mother Nature’s most outlandish creations.

The noble blobfish. Image Source.

If the giant panda represents the extreme of cuteness, the first creature we will visit quite literally represents the extreme ugliness of the animal kingdom. In 2013, it became the treasured mascot of the Ugly Animal Preservation Society, and with it the unofficial title of “World’s Ugliest Animal.” Meet Psychrolutes microporos, more commonly known as the blobfish. Unfortunately for blobfish, their only other name is ‘fathead sculpin’, a term based purely on their unbecoming appearance. Living at depths of 2,000-4,000 feet (roughly 600-1200 meters) in waters around Australia and New Zealand, blobfish lead lives perfect for social distancing. They spend their time alone floating just above the seafloor, waiting for any other organism to wander by. Regardless of what that organism happens to be, blobfish prefer to eat first and ask questions later.

A member of the blobfish family in its habitat. Image Source.

Interestingly, the blobfish has no swim bladder. Instead, their bodies are made up of flesh that is slightly less dense than the water around them, allowing for long periods of patient immobility.

Due to the limits of researching in the deep ocean, very little is actually known about the blobfish. Deep sea trawlers occasionally acquire blobfish as bycatch and the specimens are often discarded. This lack of information makes the ecological situation of blobfish all the more dire. Scientists simply do not know what the impacts of climate change, pollution, and overfishing may be for blobfish. Psychrolutes microporos could be completely safe or critically endangered. In this way, the blobfish represents the situation of many animals throughout the world. The blobfish is the standard-bearer for threatened species who have not been researched or are completely undiscovered by science.

Artist depiction of blobfish in their natural habitat. Image Source.