FOR AGES 3 YEARS TO 18 YEARS
At Kidadl we pride ourselves on offering families original ideas to make the most of time spent together at home or out and about, wherever you are in the world. We strive to recommend the very best things that are suggested by our community and are things we would do ourselves - our aim is to be the trusted friend to parents.
We try our very best, but cannot guarantee perfection. We will always aim to give you accurate information at the date of publication - however, information does change, so it’s important you do your own research, double-check and make the decision that is right for your family.
Kidadl provides inspiration to entertain and educate your children. We recognise that not all activities and ideas are appropriate and suitable for all children and families or in all circumstances. Our recommended activities are based on age but these are a guide. We recommend that these ideas are used as inspiration, that ideas are undertaken with appropriate adult supervision, and that each adult uses their own discretion and knowledge of their children to consider the safety and suitability.
Kidadl cannot accept liability for the execution of these ideas, and parental supervision is advised at all times, as safety is paramount. Anyone using the information provided by Kidadl does so at their own risk and we can not accept liability if things go wrong.
Have you heard of a fish that weighs more than a car? Yes, it's the sunfish (mola mola). Sunfish are called so because they love to sunbathe at the surface of the water to regulate their body temperature. Sunfishes are known to be one of the heaviest bony fishes that belong to the molidae family and are known by their scientific name mola mola. They are circular in shape, quite unusual, isn’t it? Ocean sunfish species can be found in tropical and temperate oceans in the world. If there are any wounds or parasites around the body of the sunfish (Mola mola), they are cleaned by the butterflyfish while the tail is cleaned by the emperor angelfish, and the head is cleaned by the bannerfish.
There are many special and unusual characteristics that will pique your interest in the ocean sunfish species.
Here are some fun, engaging and interesting facts on sunfish that will make you more curious about them. Afterwards, do check our other articles on plaice and blue runner as well.
Sunfish is one of the heaviest bony fishes with a heavy body and belongs to the molidae family. The female sunfish is the only animal that lays 300 million eggs during a single time and these fishes originated suddenly after the disappearance of dinosaurs around 35-45 million years ago. Ocean sunfish is a common species in oceans and this sea species are also known as common mola. The closest known relatives of sunfish are pufferfish.
Sunfish is a bony fish that belongs to the actinopterygii class. Sunfish comes under the order tetraodontiformes of the molidae family. The scientific name of this species is mola mola. Sunfish loves to sunbathe to regulate its body temperature, that's how it got its name. Freshwater fish species like bluegill sunfish, redbreast sunfish, longear sunfish and green sunfish are not related to the giant sunfish species and belong to the perciformes order instead.
There is no accurate and rough estimate of the total number of sunfish in the world. Their population is slightly decreasing due to commercial fishing but at present survival threats confront the overall population of these fishes across world's oceans.
Sunfish live in oceans. Ocean sunfish mola is usually found in the tropical and temperate regions of the Indian oceans and the great Pacific oceans as well as the Mediterranean oceans and the Atlantic oceans. They are usually seen in the southern coasts of Africa, the British Isles, Indonesia, and Southern Isles of New Zealand.
Freshwater sunfish mola is found in the tropical and temperate oceans across the world. This wild fish species is likely have its habitat in open oceans but sometimes go deep into the coral reefs in order to clean themselves with the help of parasites. Their feeding habits have led to them to be categorised as foragers.
Sunfish or ocean sunfish prefer to live alone mostly. But sometimes when these wild fishes go to coral reefs to clean themselves, they can be seen in groups.
The lifespan of ocean sunfish in their natural habitat is not known whereas it may live up to 10 years in captivity.
Sunfish’s mating system is not known properly. These fishes are thought to have courtship displays. Female sunfish produce 300 million eggs at a time and the eggs are released into the water where external fertilization takes place. Sunfish larvae are very tiny in size and grow into fry and later they become 60 million times their actual size. Young sunfishes have similarities with puff fish as they both are related.
Sunfish is listed under the Vulnerable species list by IUCN. Their population is slowly decreasing due to commercial fishing. Hence, they face an extinction threat.
Ocean sunfish is known for its unusual shape. Sunfish have a large body that is kind of ovular and have thin and rubbery skin with no scales. The dorsal and anal fins of sunfish are lengthened. But the pectoral fins are in the shape of a fan and are small sized. The skeleton of a sunfish is largely made up of cartilaginous tissues and has a pseudo tail called clavus that is formed by the intersection of dorsal and anal fins. They are usually in grey- brown color and sometimes dark silvery grey and have a white belly. Sunfish have fused teeth that are in the form of a beak-like structure.
Sunfish is one of the huge and heaviest bony fish and its body is really enormous in size. Their teeth are fused and have a beak-like structure. They are weird and unusual in appearance and cannot be called cute.
Communication methods of sunfish are not known entirely. They are known to be communicating by excreting chemicals from the body.
An ocean sunfish is a large sized fish and has a length of 10-11 ft (3-3.35 m). They are very huge and are called the heaviest known bony fish in the world.
A sunfish can swim at a speed of 1.9 mph (3.05 kph) and are not fast but clumsy swimmers.
On an average scale, an adult sunfish may weigh between 545-2205 lb (247.2-1000.17 kg).
Male and female sunfish do not have any particular name and are known as male sunfish and female sunfish respectively.
A baby sunfish is called a fry.
Sunfishes are carnivores. They are voracious predators that feed on main jellyfishes and other food includes tiny fishes, aquatic crustaceans, cnidarians, mollusks and zooplankton. An adult sunfish is not attacked by any predator due to its large size. But medium sized fishes are attacked by sea lions, killer whales and sharks.
A sunfish is not dangerous to humans as it does not have an interest in attacking humans. But they are voracious predators who attack other fishes. They are not aggressive in behavior usually.
Sunfishes are not suitable for keeping as pets. They are difficult to be kept even in large aquariums because of their growth rate and huge body size. There is no exact information available regarding the price of an ocean sunfish. So, you need to check with the local pet store regarding the cost of a sunfish.
Sunfish are one of the world’s weirdest fish. They are considered useless for their heavy body, absence of swim bladders and that even the predators do not like to eat them and would rather chew their fins just for fun.
Sunfish are called swimming heads in German.
They have control over the jellyfish population as their main prey is jellyfishes.
A sunfish sailboat draws its name from this species.
Ocean sunfish is found in the UK but only during the summers.
As the sunfish is huge in size, they are considered extremely suitable for eating by humans.
The mola mola is one of the dumbest fish species, second only to the dumb gulper shark.
Ocean sunfish mola was discovered in 1758. The first ocean sunfish is claimed to be in Mount Bay Aquarium, California that arrived in August 1986.
Sunfish reproductive behaviors are a little unknown. They reproduce via broadcasting spawning and it occurs between August and October. Female sunfish release 300 million eggs into the water and sperm is released approximately during the same time.
Here at Kidadl, we have carefully created lots of interesting family-friendly animal facts for everyone to discover! For more relatable content, check out these devil fish facts and candiru facts for kids.
You can even occupy yourself at home by coloring in one of our sunfish coloring pages.
Read The Disclaimer
At Kidadl we pride ourselves on offering families original ideas to make the most of time spent together at home or out and about, wherever you are in the world. We strive to recommend the very best things that are suggested by our community and are things we would do ourselves - our aim is to be the trusted friend to parents.
We try our very best, but cannot guarantee perfection. We will always aim to give you accurate information at the date of publication - however, information does change, so it’s important you do your own research, double-check and make the decision that is right for your family.
Kidadl provides inspiration to entertain and educate your children. We recognise that not all activities and ideas are appropriate and suitable for all children and families or in all circumstances. Our recommended activities are based on age but these are a guide. We recommend that these ideas are used as inspiration, that ideas are undertaken with appropriate adult supervision, and that each adult uses their own discretion and knowledge of their children to consider the safety and suitability.
Kidadl cannot accept liability for the execution of these ideas, and parental supervision is advised at all times, as safety is paramount. Anyone using the information provided by Kidadl does so at their own risk and we can not accept liability if things go wrong.
Kidadl is independent and to make our service free to you the reader we are supported by advertising.
We hope you love our recommendations for products and services! What we suggest is selected independently by the Kidadl team. If you purchase using the buy now button we may earn a small commission. This does not influence our choices. Please note: prices are correct and items are available at the time the article was published.
Kidadl has a number of affiliate partners that we work with including Amazon. Please note that Kidadl is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.
We also link to other websites, but are not responsible for their content.
Was this article helpful?
We’ll send you tons of inspiration to help you find a hidden gem in your local area or plan a big day out.
Check your inbox for your latest news from us. You have subscribed to:
Remember that you can always manage your preferences or unsubscribe through the link at the foot of each newsletter.