Scientists Have Captured The First-ever Footage Of A Mysterious Ghost Fish From The Depths Of The Ocean

• 14.08.2026, 17:58

Her appearance seems almost fantastical.

For the first time, researchers have captured images of a fish with a transparent head in one of the most inhospitable environments on Earth—the ocean’s twilight zone, where sunlight does not penetrate.

The ocean covers most of the planet’s surface and is home to an incredible number of species. Interestingly, some of these species manage to survive in the most inhospitable environment—the twilight zone—where life faces a shortage of sunlight, oxygen, and food. This environment is also known for the incredibly strange life that thrives there—living organisms have developed all sorts of bizarre body structures to adapt to this strange environment, writes IFLScience.

For some creatures, this means having a transparent head. We’re talking about Winteria telescopa, also known as the binocular fish or the jelly-faced ghost fish. Members of this species are also distinguished by their unusual barrel-shaped eyes, which can be seen through their transparent heads—recently, scientists managed for the first time in history to capture images of a fish with a transparent head in its natural habitat.

According to the scientists, the footage allowed them to examine the structure of the fish’s eyes: they are positioned parallel to each other, aligned along the fish’s body, and are clearly focused on something. Scientists suspect that this unusual eye structure allows them to see even the faintest glimmers of sunlight or bioluminescence in their surroundings. Essentially, it’s an excellent way to find food when living in near-perpetual darkness. With eyes larger than their tiny mouths, these barrel-eyed fish hunt only modest prey, such as crustaceans and siphonophores.

According to researchers from the Schmidt Institute of Oceanology, the footage was captured in the twilight zone at a depth of about 710 meters. The footage was captured using the remotely operated underwater vehicle SuBastian. However, scientists know that ghostfish are actually capable of diving much deeper—their range extends from 400 to 2,500 meters.

The researchers note that the new video is incredibly important for science, as it represents a breakthrough in our understanding of this unusual species—previously, scientists could only rely on specimens caught in fishing nets. Although these finds sometimes lead to the ichthyological discovery of the century, they are usually damaged on their way to the surface.