The world of marine animals is fascinating but it’s still largely unexplored. The majority of fishes and mammals of the oceans we recognise widely are just a fraction of the legions of unbelievable lifeforms that actually exists below the shiny blue-green water. One such creature to be recently captured on camera is the very elusive ‘penis fish.’ Yes, you read that right. There is a type of fish somewhere off the coast of Australia that looks exactly like male genitalia.
From its shape to visible texture — the resemblance of this fish to a human penis is uncanny. The photograph was taken by Josie Jones, 48, who is a free diver. She was exploring the ocean around Rye Front Beach in Victoria and spotted something bizarre. Though called a ‘fish’, it is actually a sea worm. It belongs to phylum priapulida which includes other penis-resembling sea worms. However, some of them are more similar to their namesake than others.
The one photographed by Jones is exceptionally similar.
Jones shared the pictures on her Instagram and couldn’t believe they became so popular. The same pictures were shared by a few users on Facebook as well where people got really colourful in their comparison of the worm to sex toys and genitals.
Some asked where to put the batteries, and some said it was nature “having an urge.”
According to some reports, the name of the genus is a connotation for Priapos— he was the ancient Greek God for male generative power. The animal lives in shallow, muddy waters around 90 meters (300 ft) deep.
While its shape may be a source of mirth and jokes, Jones’s work is really important. “I have cleaned this beach for 10 years and so I’ve seen the difference cleaning has made to the water,” she said as she wants sea-cucumbers like the penis-fish to have a better life. Jones also runs multiple campaigns to make people aware of the various animals that exist around Australian shores and how they can try to protect them. Many marine animals face endangerment due to human activities.