Head to head
Batfish vs Red Handfish
A batfish and a red handfish both walk across the seafloor on leg-like fins instead of swimming, a strange shared solution to seafloor life evolved by two separate fish families with very different global fortunes.
| Batfish | Red Handfish | |
|---|---|---|
| Scientific name | Ogcocephalidae | Thymichthys politus |
| Prey lure | Yes, an illicium on the snout | None |
| Native range | Worldwide tropical and temperate seas | One small reef area near Tasmania |
| Global rarity | Widespread and common | Among the rarest fish alive |
| Movement style | Walking on leg-like fins | Walking on hand-shaped fins |
| Diet | Carnivore | Carnivore |
| Habitat | Ocean seafloor | Ocean and coastal reef |
| Conservation status | Least Concern | Critically Endangered |
Batfish vs Red Handfish: common questions
Are the batfish and red handfish closely related?
No, despite both walking across the seafloor on leg-like fins instead of swimming, the batfish and red handfish belong to entirely separate fish families that evolved this unusual walking behaviour independently, a case of two unrelated groups converging on a similar solution to life on the seafloor.
Why does the batfish have a lure but the red handfish does not?
The batfish belongs to the same broader order of fish as anglerfish and retains a small specialised lure called an illicium on its snout to attract prey, while the red handfish belongs to a separate handfish family that instead relies on ambush from stillness and camouflage rather than an active lure to capture nearby crustaceans.
Which of the two fish is more at risk of extinction?
The red handfish is at drastically higher risk, classified as Critically Endangered with only a small number of known wild individuals surviving within a single tiny patch of reef near Tasmania, while the batfish remains widespread and common across tropical and temperate seafloor habitat worldwide.