UPY 2025

UPY  Behaviour - Commended
'Little Monster in the Mouth'
Wen Chou Wu

I believe most of divers have read about tongue-eating parasites on social media. It passes through the gills into the fish's mouth, eventually replacing the fish's tongue and becoming part of the fish. How terrifying!
In August 2024, when I was doing my five meter safety stop, I spotted a blenny hiding in a hole and I took a few photos to pass the time during the safety stop. I didn't find anything "abnormal" about this Blenny during shooting, Blenny was smiling as usual, but when I checked my photos on my computer, I noticed that the blenny also had a "Little Monster" in its mouth. I thought this fish would be tortured by tongue-eating louse, but the two seem to be in some kind of peaceful balance, making this photo cute and scary at the same time.

Judge's comment: Viewing this image takes you on a journey from cute to repulsed. Initially it seems like an engaging portrait of this cheeky blenny, and then as you examine the smile, you spot the eyes of the isopod parasite that has eaten away and replaced the tongue of the fish!