The blobfish resembles a normal fish in its deep sea habitat but when brought to the surface, it morphs into a mushy creature with an unfortunate appearance.
The creature, which grows to about 12 inches (30cm) long, is known affectionately as Mr Blobby and is the official mascot of the Ugly Animal Preservation Society.
It has a bulbous head, and loose, flabby skin, and lives in the deep sea, mainly off the southeastern coast of mainland Australia, the Australian island of Tasmania, and New Zealand.
The blobfish topped the annual poll by the Mountains to Sea Conservation Trust, an environmental non-profit group, winning almost 1,300 out of more than 5,500 votes.
The animal, which has a gelatinous, tadpole-like body, benefitted from a late surge in support to overtake the endangered orange roughy, another deep sea dweller, by nearly 300 votes.
In their natural habitat, on the seabed at depths of about 2,000ft to 4,000ft (600m-1,200m), blobfish resemble any other fish.
But when brought to the surface, where the water pressure isn’t high enough to maintain their shape, blobfish morph into mushy creatures with an unfortunate appearance.
