Behold: the ornate ghost pipefish.
This strange fish, also known as the harlequin ghost pipefish, defies all normal fish logic. Maybe that’s why it’s called Solenostomus paradoxus. Or maybe the paradox lies in the fact that the ornate ghost pipefish is actually no pipefish at all; ghost pipefishes are also known as false pipefishes.
Paradox or not, there’s no denying that the ornate ghost pipefish is striking to look at. Its unusual appearance is attention-grabbing like that of the lionfish, but in a much more diminutive and understated package. Maxing out at only a few inches long, this tiny fish spends its leisure time cruising the crinoids, floating face down in the feather stars, moving with the current, blending in. It’s so camouflaged, it’s almost like it’s mocking you: “I’m beautiful, but you can’t find me.”
Stupid snooty Solenostomus.
But once you get past the fascinating façade, you have to admit to yourself, at least a little, that the ornate ghost pipefish is just a weird fish. It’s a captivating fish, but its strange shape and coloring are less royal court and more court jester. Less opera and more Top 40. Less sonnet and more limerick… wait. That gives me an idea.
A limerick… about an ornate ghost pipefish. Why haven’t I thought of that before?
Don’t answer that.
The Ornate Ghost Pipefish: A Limerick
There once was a pipefish so ornate,
the crinoid it lived in seemed cut-rate.
“This feather star’s plain,”
said the fish, “I’d not deign
“to inhabit so homely an estate.”
