A Face Only A Mother Could Love

The oyster toadfish (Opsanus tau) is a famously hardy denizen of Long Island Sound, named for its appetite for oysters, as well as a toad-like face and the ability to produce a croaking sound in order to attract a mate. (Fun fact: it produces the sound with muscles attached to its swimbladder, and these muscles are the fastest known muscles of any vertebrate!)

The toadfish is patterned with brown and orange, ideal for camouflage amongst rocks. It uses its camouflage to hide from its prey before ambushing its meal! It has no scales and a thick layer of mucus on its skin, both of which help it squeeze in and out of tight spaces in its habitat.

Did you know that oyster toadfish have been to space? In 1998, toadfish were used in an experiment testing the effects of microgravity on development – the toadfish were just fine, and developed normally!