Blobfish Goes From ‘World’s Ugliest Animal’ To Fish Of The Year

Forbes - Mar 19th, 2025

In a surprising twist, the blobfish, once labeled the world's ugliest animal, has been crowned New Zealand's Fish of the Year for 2025. Organized by the Mountains to Sea Conservation Trust, this contest aims to raise awareness about marine and freshwater species native to New Zealand. The blobfish beat out the orange roughy, garnering 1,286 votes compared to its competitor's 1,009, with a total of 5,583 votes cast. This victory, supported by radio network More FM, shines a spotlight on quirky deep-sea creatures and their ecological importance.

The contest underscores the vulnerability of many deep-sea species, including the blobfish, which often gets caught in nets intended for orange roughy. While the blobfish's conservation status remains uncertain, the plight of the orange roughy highlights broader environmental challenges such as climate change, overfishing, and habitat loss. The competition not only elevates the blobfish's image beyond its unsightly reputation but also emphasizes the need for conservation efforts for less visually appealing yet ecologically significant species.

New Zealand Fish Of The Year Mountains To Sea Conservation Trust Blobfish Orange Roughy Marine Conservation Deep Sea Species More Fm Environmental Awareness

Story submitted by Fairstory

RATING

6.8

Fair Story

Consider it well-founded

The article effectively combines humor and conservation to highlight the blobfish's unique recognition as New Zealand's Fish of the Year for 2025. Its strength lies in engaging storytelling, clear language, and a timely topic that captures reader interest. However, the story could benefit from greater transparency regarding the contest's methodology and more direct sourcing to enhance its credibility. While the article succeeds in raising awareness about less charismatic species, its potential impact on broader conservation efforts is limited by its entertainment-focused approach. Overall, the story is a well-crafted piece that balances entertainment with an important environmental message, though it could delve deeper into the implications of the contest and conservation challenges.

Accuracy

The story is largely accurate in its main claims, such as the blobfish being named New Zealand's Fish of the Year for 2025 and its previous recognition as the world's ugliest animal. These claims are supported by external sources and align with the factual details provided. The story accurately reports the competition details, including the vote count and the blobfish's victory over the orange roughy. However, the exact conservation status of the blobfish remains unclear, which introduces a minor area needing further verification. The story's description of the blobfish's appearance and its adaptation to deep-sea pressure is consistent with scientific explanations, adding to the story's credibility.

Balance

The story maintains a balanced perspective by providing both the humorous and serious aspects of the blobfish's recognition. It acknowledges the comedic nature of its 'ugliest animal' title while highlighting the conservation message behind such contests. However, the article could explore more perspectives on the conservation efforts and the potential ecological impact of the contest. The narrative primarily focuses on the blobfish, with less emphasis on the broader implications for other species and marine conservation.

Clarity

The article is well-structured and uses clear, engaging language to convey the story of the blobfish's recognition. The narrative flows logically from the blobfish's reputation to its victory in the contest, making it easy for readers to follow. The playful tone adds to the readability, while the inclusion of specific details about the contest and the blobfish's characteristics enhances understanding. However, the article could provide more background information on the contest and its significance to improve clarity further.

Source quality

The article references credible organizations like the Mountains to Sea Conservation Trust and the Marine Science Institute at the University of Texas at Austin, which enhance its reliability. However, the story lacks direct citations or links to primary sources or statements from these organizations. Including more direct quotes or references from the contest organizers or marine scientists would strengthen the source quality and provide a more solid basis for the claims made.

Transparency

The article provides some context about the blobfish's reputation and the nature of the contest, but it lacks transparency regarding the methodology behind the voting process and the selection criteria for the contest. The story could benefit from a clearer explanation of how the contest aims to raise awareness and its impact on conservation efforts. Additionally, the article does not disclose any potential biases or conflicts of interest that might influence the reporting.