Meet the Wacky Sunfish

by Sol-Saray, age 10

Imagine swimming and seeing a fin coming towards you. But wait, don't freak out yet! It might just be a giant sunfish.

Just how big is a sunfish? They can weigh up to 5,000 pounds and grow up to 14 feet long! They can be found living in tropical places. Their scientific name is Mola Mola. Unlike sharks that only have cartilage, sunfish have bones. It is the largest bony fish ever discovered.

The sunfish has a short fin called a clavus that is used to help the fish steer. Sunfish are round and have dorsal fins like sharks. People often mistake their fins for shark fins when they are on ocean surfaces. These fish are called sunfish because they like sunning themselves at the top of the ocean. These fish have small mouths, which means they need to eat smaller food than other fish.

Sunfish’s favorite food is jellyfish, but they eat small fish and small parts of dead animals they find in the water. Sea lions enjoy eating sunfish, so they have to be careful around areas where sea lions live.

Sunfish sometimes get skin parasites without knowing which can cause a lot of damage. To fix this problem, they swim up to the surface of the water and jump, slamming themselves against the water as hard as they can to try and shake off the parasites. They also use another method where they swim near a school of smaller fish and let them eat the parasites off their skin. This helps the school get their daily meal in while removing the painful parasites.

Who knew that such a strange fish could be so interesting? Who wouldn't love to learn more about this amazing fish?

[Source: nationalgeographic.com]