Saturday, 30 May 2026 08:36 pm
The Ocean Sunfish
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deckardcanineAlthough the ocean sunfish (Mola mola) had been seen
By ancient Greeks, it’s been a real enigma to marine
Biologists till recently: However could it thrive
When everything about it said it shouldn’t be alive?
You may have heard from folk online who call it useless trash,
Among a lot of other words that tend toward the brash.
I find that even fans will not deny some major flaws.
It does look rather dopey with its always open jaws,
Tho teeth within the pharynx still allow the fish to chew.
We used to think it fed on only jellyfish. Not true:
It mostly goes for wee fish, larvae, mollusks, and crustaceans,
Implying that it changes depths when doing its predations.
Indeed, it travels vertically a lot more than we’d think.
It doesn’t have a swim bladder, which wouldn’t let it sink.
It surfaces for warmth and to invite the birds to eat
A portion of its parasites, with which it is replete.
For stubborn ones, it leaps up from the water altogether.
Like pufferfish, it has no scales and feels a bit like leather,
Which helps dissuade its predators, more trouble than it’s worth.
Alas, it isn’t nearly as resilient right from birth.
It lays 300 million eggs at once, and you know why:
We must expect that all but one or two of them will die.
And even in adulthood, its defenses aren’t so great.
We often see one incomplete because some creature ate
A part of it. The sunfish won’t attack or even flee.
You might say it’s the chillest bony fish within the sea.
It’s certainly the biggest, having grown at super speed,
Which goes to show how frequently a sunfish has to feed.
Its brain is really tiny in proportion to its size,
Because it hardly needs to think except to use its eyes.
In truth, it’s like a turtle in the way that it behaves,
Unorthodox and therefore fit for many weirdos’ faves.
By ancient Greeks, it’s been a real enigma to marine
Biologists till recently: However could it thrive
When everything about it said it shouldn’t be alive?
You may have heard from folk online who call it useless trash,
Among a lot of other words that tend toward the brash.
I find that even fans will not deny some major flaws.
It does look rather dopey with its always open jaws,
Tho teeth within the pharynx still allow the fish to chew.
We used to think it fed on only jellyfish. Not true:
It mostly goes for wee fish, larvae, mollusks, and crustaceans,
Implying that it changes depths when doing its predations.
Indeed, it travels vertically a lot more than we’d think.
It doesn’t have a swim bladder, which wouldn’t let it sink.
It surfaces for warmth and to invite the birds to eat
A portion of its parasites, with which it is replete.
For stubborn ones, it leaps up from the water altogether.
Like pufferfish, it has no scales and feels a bit like leather,
Which helps dissuade its predators, more trouble than it’s worth.
Alas, it isn’t nearly as resilient right from birth.
It lays 300 million eggs at once, and you know why:
We must expect that all but one or two of them will die.
And even in adulthood, its defenses aren’t so great.
We often see one incomplete because some creature ate
A part of it. The sunfish won’t attack or even flee.
You might say it’s the chillest bony fish within the sea.
It’s certainly the biggest, having grown at super speed,
Which goes to show how frequently a sunfish has to feed.
Its brain is really tiny in proportion to its size,
Because it hardly needs to think except to use its eyes.
In truth, it’s like a turtle in the way that it behaves,
Unorthodox and therefore fit for many weirdos’ faves.