This Fish Can Live on Land for Days at a Time

Some creatures are dimensional travelers. Whether it be squirrels flying through the air or big cats gliding gracefully through deep water, not everyone sticks to one environment. Take the mudskipper fish, for example. There are unconfirmed reports that Jesus walked on water, but this video corroborates the fact that mudskippers use the water’s surface like a fashion runway.

The mudskipper is technically a fish, but the similarities end there. It resembles a salamander more than any of its gill-carrying cousins. It also has a penchant for leaving its liquid environment to explore the air above. It’s a fascinating little fish. Let’s learn more about the mudskipper, why it likes to fly through the air, and how it manages to accomplish such a neat little party trick.

Mudskipper Facts

Mudskippers may have a certain look, but the name accounts for 23 species of amphibious fish in the Oxudercidae family. The name comes from its unique ability to leave the water, but there’s more than meets the eye when it comes to mudskippers.

They resemble frogs or geckos more than other fish. Mudskippers have eyes that protrude from the top of their heads, which can independently blink, forward pectoral fins that function more like limbs, and a greenish-brown color that resolves into bright spots on males to attract mates. Typically, they live in mangrove habitats and mudflats in areas as diverse as East Africa and Taiwan, where they grow up to a foot long.

There, mudskippers often burrow in soft sediment to regulate temperature and hide from predators. Once the coast is clear, they emerge to feast on small creatures like crabs, snails, and insects. But mudskippers are opportunistic predators and sometimes cannibals. They will eat members of their own species. Yet, the most fascinating thing about mudskippers is their ability to walk on water, fly above it, and crawl around on the ground for extended periods.

Walking on Water

Mudskippers have developed some remarkable evolutionary advantages for leaving the water. They can breathe through their skin and the lining of their throats while wet. Once they emerge into the open air, they retain bubbles of air in their gill chambers, which helps them stay alive. Furthermore, they can naturally suppress amino acid breakdown and reduce the toxic ammonia production that comes with leaving the water. If they run low on air, mudskippers wet their fins and rub them against their gills to replenish their oxygen supply.

Using these arm-like pectoral fins, mudskippers skip out of the water and across its surface. Some have been observed to hop as far as two feet at a clip. As this video shows, they make short work of transdimensional travel. Once free from the water, mudskippers can spend an incredible amount of time on land, walking around or skipping using their conveniently placed fins. Some species can last over three days out of the water. This isn’t a fluke, either. They spend over half their life on land, where they engage in hunting, territorial disputes, and mating rituals.

There’s no fish quite like the mudskipper. Part amphibian, part fish, but all agility, the mudskipper uses its unique adaptations to travel far beyond the limits of its fishy cousins. While they mostly stick to muddy flats next to bodies of water, their versatility is the envy of the fish within. Watch out, though. They may be cute in an odd sort of way, but they are aggressive and will defend their territory when pressed.