The breakthrough came with observations by divers last year off east Indonesia's Ambon island. A seabed dweller, the ball-like fish was noted to move away from them in a series of hops, launching itself from the bottom with strong pelvic fins.
Not able to identify the fish but suspecting from its movement that it could be a type of frogfish, the divers sent pictures of the bouncy beastie to a frogfish expert in Washington.
The specialist and fellow marine biologists confirmed that the fish was indeed a variety of frogfish, but quite different in appearance from any of its relatives. It featured concentric, swirling stripes in white and blue on a peach skin base, and aqua-coloured eyes set in a flat, broad face.
They were particularly excited to find that the fish, which they nick-named Psychedelica, was actually discovered some 20 years ago - but that a specimen captured had sat in a research depository having been wrongly identified, gathering dust.
A formal scientific name for the creature has yet to be confirmed.
Archive | 
Win a Luxfer pony cylinder
