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Animal profile

Mariana Snailfish

Pseudoliparis swirei

ActinopterygiiHadal zone of the Mariana Trench, roughly 6,900 to 8,000 metres

Field profile

The Mariana snailfish is a small pale tadpole-shaped fish described in 2017 from the deepest part of the Mariana Trench. It has loose translucent skin, no scales and a partly unossified skeleton. It is currently the deepest fish ever collected and formally described.

Scope note

This is an editorial profile, not a diagnostic field-identification guide or a substitute for current conservation assessments. Follow the cited sources on each fact for the evidence trail.

Published field notes

2026-07-18

Mariana Snailfish

The deepest known fish lives near eight kilometres

Snailfishes have been collected from about 8,000 metres in the Mariana Trench and filmed slightly deeper elsewhere, which is close to the depth at which fish physiology is predicted to fail.

Read with evidence →

Mariana Snailfish | Daily Animal Facts