Fish

With an estimated 20,000 different species, there is an immense variety of fish. The variation in size is enormous: the tiny Paedocypris progenetica is only 8 millimetres long, and the whale shark can reach over 12 metres. Fish are adapted to live in many different habitats: trout and catfish can live in freshwater; seahorses and yellow tang fish live in coral reefs; and down on the deep, dark ocean floor are anglerfish and cookie cutter sharks.
Photo of the male and female Asian sheephead wrasse

How can animals switch sex?

About one in 50 fish species can change from male to female – or back again
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dietary supplement omega in a white bowl in the shape of a fish

These are the best omega oils that could slow ageing

From salmon to supplements, here’s everything you need to know about omega oils…
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Infrared Thermal Image of Long Tiled Tit. Long Tiled Tit with spread wings on branch.

Can any animals see in infared?

While infrared light is invisible to most animals, there are some, including salmon, bullfrogs and snakes, that can see it
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Illustration of a shark fin in a bowl of soup

What is the most dangerous fish to eat?

Pufferfish is considered the most dangerous fish to eat; it is poisonous, potentially fatal. But if sliced properly, it can be quite tasty
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A pair of ring-necked doves in a tree near Arusha, Tanzania, East Africa

This bizarre optical illusion could teach us how animals think

By seeing which animals fall for a classic visual trick, scientists are uncovering how different brains make sense of the world
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Photo of angler fish, female with males attached.

What's the weirdest way fish mate?

Note to self: never date an anglerfish
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A lungfish swimming through water

How mucus kept this air-breathing eel hidden from scientists for 30 years

The lungfish isn't like other fish... for one key reason.
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Weird animals: A photograph of a blobfish

Blobfish: Facts about the ugliest animal in the world

Learn what the blobfish really looks like – and why it’s become an unlikely poster child for marine conservation.
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A small fish with a large, inflated stomach.

Nature's weirdest: The black swallower fish

It's a plucky fish whose eyes are definitely not bigger than their stomach.
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Day octopus facing off with a blacktip grouper

Octopuses are now punching fish – and we have the footage to prove it

The fisticuffs occur during cooperative hunting trips.
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Underwater image of a silvery green European eel (Anguilla anguilla) against a black background

The mysterious sex life of eels: How scientists finally unveiled their (truly bizarre) life cycle

Long, silvery and mysterious, these endangered fish make a big journey to reproduce.
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The head of a fish with a set of human-like teeth

What is a sheepshead fish?

The sheepshead fish has human-like teeth helps it consume an omnivorous diet.
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Why do animals migrate? © Nature Picture Library

Why do animals migrate?

Many animals make long, treacherous journeys year after year, so why do they go to all that effort?
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What is a wolf eel? © Alamy

What is a wolf eel?

This voracious eater is not actually an eel...
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What’s the environmental impact of cigarette butts? © Getty Images

What’s the environmental impact of cigarette butts?

Cigarette butts contain chemicals toxic to wildlife and create 845,000 tons of litter every year.
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