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Name : Sarcastic fringehead ( Neoclinus blanchardi )
Where it lives : From San Francisco , to Baja California , Mexico
Sarcastic fringeheads are extremely aggressive and fight by yawning at each other.
What it eats : low prey such as fish , crustacean , and squid eggs
Why it ’s awesome : Sarcastic fringeheads are best known for their silly name , extreme aggression and unconventional fighting style — basically , angrily yawning at each other .
ordinarily found on rocky Rand or sandy seabeds between around 9 and 240 foot ( 3 to 73 meters ) below the water ’s surface , these solitary fish make their home inside shells , clam burrows , rock crack , " or even in empty seat and bottles if there is defilement , " according to a 2014 AAASarticle .
Despite being small — usually around 3 to 8 inches ( 7.5 to 20 centimeters ) long , although they can grow to 12 inches ( 30 curium ) — they can be passing belligerent andattackalmost anything that strays too close , including underwater diver , accord to theAquarium of the Pacificin California .
Sarcastic fringeheads fight for dominance in a ( literal ) jaw - dropping display 😮 Do n’t miss # SuperNaturalSeries , from @JimCameron and narrated by Benedict Cumberbatch , now pour on @DisneyPlus . pic.twitter.com/89BQi3PAarSeptember 23 , 2022
If a femalechoosesa male to be her teammate , she lays her testicle in his den for him to fertilize . He ’s then responsible for protecting the eggs until the young crosshatch .
associate : Fish ma that carry untested in their mouths sometimes wipe out their sister for breakfast
This makes these animals highly territorial , and there is intense challenger between Male for prime spots in which to set up their dwelling house : if they do n’t have a tunnel , they wo n’t be able to reproduce .
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When oppose over territory , the Pisces the Fishes endeavor to restrain their opposer by open their jaw wide to display the brilliant colors indoors . " The mouth ’s restrain coloration , combine with the extreme nature of its size of it ( which may be as much as four clip its shut sizing ) allows the larger male person to establish dominance over the smaller , " concord to the conservation organizationOceana .
If the competitor is n’t fright off by the giant , colored mouth display , the twain will launch into oral fissure - to - mouth combat , pressing their wide mouths together . " While this may look like the fish are kissing , they are in fact aggressively defend their district from each other , " Inamura said . The bigger the fish ’s mouth , the more chance it has of winning this conflict .
These over - the - top display have earned the fish the " sarcastic " part of their name .
