Mola mola: The Incredible Hulk

Writer: Dr Anina Lee.

A couple of weeks ago a large Ocean Sunfish or Mola mola washed out on the beach at Nature’s Valley. The Nature’s Valley Conservation Trust posted some photographs on social media.

There are actually three species of sunfish that are found in the temperate waters off the South African coast. Some have even been spotted in Walker Bay.

It is probably one of the more bizarre-looking fish in the ocean. For a fish it certainly is – the largest bony fish in the world. There are larger fish in the sea, but they are all elasmobranchs (cartilaginous fish), like sharks, rays and whale sharks. Instead of a bony skeleton, they have cartilage (the same stuff your ears and the tip of your nose are made of).

Sunfish do not have scales to protect them like most bony fish do. They have a sandpapery skin, more like a shark. This lack of scaly protection makes them more vulnerable to parasites – but more of that later.

Click below to read more. (The full article can be found on page 17)