'World's ugliest animal' is New Zealand's fish of the year
Once dubbed the world's ugliest animal for its soft, lumpy appearance, the blobfish has made a stunning comeback: it was crowned this week as Fish of the Year by a New Zealand environmental group.
The annual competition, held by the Mountain to Sea Conservation Trust, aims to raise awareness for New Zealand's freshwater and marine life.
This year, the blobfish took home the coveted accolade with nearly 1,300 out of more than 5,500 votes cast.
It's an underdog victory for the blobfish, which burst into mainstream notoriety as the mascot for the Ugly Animal Preservation Society in 2013.
The gelatinous fish lives on the sea bed and grows to about 12in (30cm) in length. They're mainly found off the coast of Australia and Tasmania, where they live at depths of 2,000-4,000 ft (600-1,200m).
While the blobfish is known for its misshapen silhouette, in its natural deep-sea habitat it actually resembles a regular fish, with its shape kept together by the high water pressure.
However, when caught and rapidly brought to the water surface its body deforms into its hallmark mushy shape - the same one that has earned it the reputation of being among the ugliest creatures the world has seen.
Coming in second place was the orange roughy, a deep-sea fish in the slimehead family - known for the mucous canals on their heads.
It was "a battle of the deep sea forget-me-nots," said Kim Jones, co-director of the Mountains to Sea Conservation Trust. "A battle of two quirky deep sea critters, with the blobfish's unconventional beauty helping get voters over the line."
The orange roughy had appeared on track for the win, until a couple of local radio station hosts started a passionate campaign for the blobfish.
"There is an up and coming fish, it needs your vote," Sarah Gandy and Paul Flynn, hosts of local radio network More FM, urged listeners on their show last week. "We need the blobfish to win."
News of the blobfish's victory has been celebrated by the radio hosts.
"The blobfish had been sitting patiently on the ocean floor, mouth open waiting for the next mollusc to come through to eat," the pair said. "He has been bullied his whole life and we thought, 'Stuff this, it's time for the blobfish to have his moment in the sun', and what a glorious moment it is!"
Besides molluscs, the blobfish also eats custaceans like crabs and lobsters, as well as sea urchins.
Instead of a skeleton and scales, the blobfish has a soft body and flabby skin.
Nine of the ten nominees for fish of the year are considered by conservation groups to be vulnerable, according to the Mountains to Sea Conservation Trust. This includes the blobfish, which are vulnerable to deep-sea trawling.
New Zealand also has a Bird of the Year contest, organised by conservation organisation Forest & Bird. The latest winner, crowned last September, was the hoiho, a rare penguin species.
John Oliver's pick wins NZ Bird of the Century poll
The ugly animals who need saving too
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CNN
01-07-2025
- CNN
What we saw at the Paris Fashion Week menswear shows
Against the backdrop of a scorching heatwave in Europe that has not spared the French capital, the menswear edition of Paris Fashion Week wrapped up on Sunday. The sweltering conditions were perhaps an incidental metaphor for the pressure the industry is feeling as the global luxury industry experiences a troubling slowdown. To this end, the Spring-Summer 2026 collections felt restrained. In a climate of uncertainty, designers proposed modular, adaptable wardrobes attuned to a global consumer, and the attention shifted away from slogans and theatrics toward refined construction and nuance, with block colors, versatile garments and an eye towards utility. That said, when it came to show production, the bar remained high, with runways once again staged at major Parisian landmarks, attended by a bevy of A-List guests. The week's most anticipated event took place at the famed Hôtel des Invalides, where Dior presented its first show by Jonathan Anderson, the founder of London label J.W. Anderson, who stepped down from Loewe after transforming the luxury brand over the past 11 years. Pop royalty and industry titans, including Rihanna, Sabrina Carpenter, Donatella Versace and Robert Pattinson, all sat front row for his highly anticipated debut, which was set in a room mimicking interiors of Berlin's Gemäldegalerie museum featuring 18th-century artworks. Off the heels of Dior Men's era of Kim Jones, who offered elegant twists on menswear in theatrical runway shows, Anderson ushered in a playful, everyday sense of luxury, delving into the house's heritage by reintroducing classic silhouettes morphed in new ways. The Bar jacket, cinched at the waist and introduced in the 1950s, was presented oversized — with a skirt-suit version simultaneously showcased by Carpenter in the front row — while cargo pants featured trailing panels that echoed the 1949 Dior Delft ball gown. Flowers, central to Christian Dior and his garden in Granville, featured as minute embroideries and a handbag that replicated a cover of the 1857 book 'Les Fleurs du Mal' by French poet Charles Baudelaire. At another Parisian cultural landmark, in front of the Centre Pompidou, Pharrell Williams presented a majestic show for Louis Vuitton with Beyoncé and Jay-Z arriving last before the sunset event. But the collection proved more understated than its presentation, despite its focus on India's sartorial influence on contemporary fashion. The set, by architect Bijoy Jain of Studio Mumbai, was a life-sized take on the ancient Indian board game of Snakes and Ladders. Tailoring came with an air of effortless dandyism, with indigo overcoats and mustard pleated shorts before moving toward hiking chic, with windbreakers and climbing boots complete with bejeweled socks. The eccentric show felt spun off from a Wes Anderson set, and that was intentional — with jacket motifs paying homage to the Louis Vuitton trunks featured in Anderson's 2007 train-journey film 'The Darjeeling Limited,' set in India. Rather than a museum setting, the British-born designer Grace Wales Bonner celebrated the 10th anniversary of her eponymous label by going back to school. Titled 'Jewel,' the collection took the stage at the prestigious Lycée Henri-IV secondary school in the city's Latin Quarter and explored the idea of inheritance. The garments' layered, preppy lines drew on British know-how through collaborations with Savile Row tailors Anderson & Sheppard and milliner Stephen Jones for berets. Staying true to her signature fusion of genres, Bonner also partnered with streetwear brand Y-3. In addition to sporty, paper-thin knits and sheer bejeweled shirting, Bonner paired flared silhouettes with patent opera pumps, and elevated tailcoats with baobab brooches and pops of colors on lapels and collars. At several shows, bright colors snuck onto the runway, sometimes paired with equally subversive messaging, and, at other times, a playful new take on tradition. For his second presentation in Paris, American designer Willy Chavarria opened with a bold performance — in collaboration with the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) — directly referencing the Trump administration's contested deportations of Venezuelan migrants to prisons in El Salvador. The sequence included 35 men in white t-shirts kneeling on the runway floor, appearing to echo images taken inside the Cecot megaprison; it was a declaration against 'people being profiled and persecuted with no due process,' per the show notes. From this emotional beginning, Chavarria, who often weaves Latino sartorial codes into direct political statements and messages of inclusion, revisited retro inspirations: zoot suits and film noir-inspired silhouettes in baby pink, lavender and brass satin dress coats, complete with a collaboration with classic shoemaker Charles Jourdan. At Saint Laurent, creative director Anthony Vaccarello's inspiration came from the queer communities of 1970s Fire Island in New York. That summer vibrancy translated into clothing through splashes of mustard, lime, and tangerine hues, with strong suiting softened by silk shirts topped by ton-sur-ton skinny ties or airy chiffon blouses with pussy bows. And, at Dries Van Noten, newly appointed creative director Julian Klausner unveiled his first menswear collection for the Belgian brand. Titled 'Just a Perfect Day,' the modular wardrobe shifted and loosened up over the course of an imagined night out, playing with both the hybridity of formal and casual as well as masculine and feminine. The collection featured sarongs layered over trousers, silk waistcoats paired with boxing shorts, and traditional cummerbunds — in mint or hot pink — added to more casual silhouettes. On the last day of menswear fashion week, Jacquemus, led by Simon Porte Jacquemus, hosted its closing duties. The label has become known for translating Provençal traditions into exuberant womenswear, menswear, and viral accessories. The grand show at Versailles drew a sparkling front row including actors Matthew McConaughey, Gillian Anderson and Laura Harrier. Known for weaving his own biography into his work, Jacquemus once again looked to his South of France childhood, but this time bringing his rural upbringing to the court of the king, at the palace's maze-like Orangery. The collection featured a milky palette of white, eggshell and soft pinks, constructed as ruffled aprons and corseted blouses. Tablecloth-inspired embroideries, and playful tassels referenced traditional Southern France — as did trompe-l'œil leather accessories shaped like garlic, strawberries, and leeks. Memory and myth intertwined in the show, from Marcel Pagnol films to the designer's great-grandmother and the English tourists of his childhood, he explained backstage. He used the French term 'endimanché,' or dressing up on Sunday, to describe the crisp, opaline feel of the collection, 'almost like a nurse, very minimal… my grandmother was always in white with bijoux, very pure.' Provence, he added, 'is always a dream… a very important cliché.' Scroll for the highlights from the Paris Fashion Week men's shows.
CNN
01-07-2025
- CNN
What we saw at the Paris Fashion Week menswear shows
Against the backdrop of a scorching heatwave in Europe that has not spared the French capital, the menswear edition of Paris Fashion Week wrapped up on Sunday. The sweltering conditions were perhaps an incidental metaphor for the pressure the industry is feeling as the global luxury industry experiences a troubling slowdown. To this end, the Spring-Summer 2026 collections felt restrained. In a climate of uncertainty, designers proposed modular, adaptable wardrobes attuned to a global consumer, and the attention shifted away from slogans and theatrics toward refined construction and nuance, with block colors, versatile garments and an eye towards utility. That said, when it came to show production, the bar remained high, with runways once again staged at major Parisian landmarks, attended by a bevy of A-List guests. The week's most anticipated event took place at the famed Hôtel des Invalides, where Dior presented its first show by Jonathan Anderson, the founder of London label J.W. Anderson, who stepped down from Loewe after transforming the luxury brand over the past 11 years. Pop royalty and industry titans, including Rihanna, Sabrina Carpenter, Donatella Versace and Robert Pattinson, all sat front row for his highly anticipated debut, which was set in a room mimicking interiors of Berlin's Gemäldegalerie museum featuring 18th-century artworks. Off the heels of Dior Men's era of Kim Jones, who offered elegant twists on menswear in theatrical runway shows, Anderson ushered in a playful, everyday sense of luxury, delving into the house's heritage by reintroducing classic silhouettes morphed in new ways. The Bar jacket, cinched at the waist and introduced in the 1950s, was presented oversized — with a skirt-suit version simultaneously showcased by Carpenter in the front row — while cargo pants featured trailing panels that echoed the 1949 Dior Delft ball gown. Flowers, central to Christian Dior and his garden in Granville, featured as minute embroideries and a handbag that replicated a cover of the 1857 book 'Les Fleurs du Mal' by French poet Charles Baudelaire. At another Parisian cultural landmark, in front of the Centre Pompidou, Pharrell Williams presented a majestic show for Louis Vuitton with Beyoncé and Jay-Z arriving last before the sunset event. But the collection proved more understated than its presentation, despite its focus on India's sartorial influence on contemporary fashion. The set, by architect Bijoy Jain of Studio Mumbai, was a life-sized take on the ancient Indian board game of Snakes and Ladders. Tailoring came with an air of effortless dandyism, with indigo overcoats and mustard pleated shorts before moving toward hiking chic, with windbreakers and climbing boots complete with bejeweled socks. The eccentric show felt spun off from a Wes Anderson set, and that was intentional — with jacket motifs paying homage to the Louis Vuitton trunks featured in Anderson's 2007 train-journey film 'The Darjeeling Limited,' set in India. Rather than a museum setting, the British-born designer Grace Wales Bonner celebrated the 10th anniversary of her eponymous label by going back to school. Titled 'Jewel,' the collection took the stage at the prestigious Lycée Henri-IV secondary school in the city's Latin Quarter and explored the idea of inheritance. The garments' layered, preppy lines drew on British know-how through collaborations with Savile Row tailors Anderson & Sheppard and milliner Stephen Jones for berets. Staying true to her signature fusion of genres, Bonner also partnered with streetwear brand Y-3. In addition to sporty, paper-thin knits and sheer bejeweled shirting, Bonner paired flared silhouettes with patent opera pumps, and elevated tailcoats with baobab brooches and pops of colors on lapels and collars. At several shows, bright colors snuck onto the runway, sometimes paired with equally subversive messaging, and, at other times, a playful new take on tradition. For his second presentation in Paris, American designer Willy Chavarria opened with a bold performance — in collaboration with the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) — directly referencing the Trump administration's contested deportations of Venezuelan migrants to prisons in El Salvador. The sequence included 35 men in white t-shirts kneeling on the runway floor, appearing to echo images taken inside the Cecot megaprison; it was a declaration against 'people being profiled and persecuted with no due process,' per the show notes. From this emotional beginning, Chavarria, who often weaves Latino sartorial codes into direct political statements and messages of inclusion, revisited retro inspirations: zoot suits and film noir-inspired silhouettes in baby pink, lavender and brass satin dress coats, complete with a collaboration with classic shoemaker Charles Jourdan. At Saint Laurent, creative director Anthony Vaccarello's inspiration came from the queer communities of 1970s Fire Island in New York. That summer vibrancy translated into clothing through splashes of mustard, lime, and tangerine hues, with strong suiting softened by silk shirts topped by ton-sur-ton skinny ties or airy chiffon blouses with pussy bows. And, at Dries Van Noten, newly appointed creative director Julian Klausner unveiled his first menswear collection for the Belgian brand. Titled 'Just a Perfect Day,' the modular wardrobe shifted and loosened up over the course of an imagined night out, playing with both the hybridity of formal and casual as well as masculine and feminine. The collection featured sarongs layered over trousers, silk waistcoats paired with boxing shorts, and traditional cummerbunds — in mint or hot pink — added to more casual silhouettes. On the last day of menswear fashion week, Jacquemus, led by Simon Porte Jacquemus, hosted its closing duties. The label has become known for translating Provençal traditions into exuberant womenswear, menswear, and viral accessories. The grand show at Versailles drew a sparkling front row including actors Matthew McConaughey, Gillian Anderson and Laura Harrier. Known for weaving his own biography into his work, Jacquemus once again looked to his South of France childhood, but this time bringing his rural upbringing to the court of the king, at the palace's maze-like Orangery. The collection featured a milky palette of white, eggshell and soft pinks, constructed as ruffled aprons and corseted blouses. Tablecloth-inspired embroideries, and playful tassels referenced traditional Southern France — as did trompe-l'œil leather accessories shaped like garlic, strawberries, and leeks. Memory and myth intertwined in the show, from Marcel Pagnol films to the designer's great-grandmother and the English tourists of his childhood, he explained backstage. He used the French term 'endimanché,' or dressing up on Sunday, to describe the crisp, opaline feel of the collection, 'almost like a nurse, very minimal… my grandmother was always in white with bijoux, very pure.' Provence, he added, 'is always a dream… a very important cliché.' Scroll for the highlights from the Paris Fashion Week men's shows.
CNN
01-07-2025
- CNN
What we saw at the Paris Fashion Week menswear shows
Against the backdrop of a scorching heatwave in Europe that has not spared the French capital, the menswear edition of Paris Fashion Week wrapped up on Sunday. The sweltering conditions were perhaps an incidental metaphor for the pressure the industry is feeling as the global luxury industry experiences a troubling slowdown. To this end, the Spring-Summer 2026 collections felt restrained. In a climate of uncertainty, designers proposed modular, adaptable wardrobes attuned to a global consumer, and the attention shifted away from slogans and theatrics toward refined construction and nuance, with block colors, versatile garments and an eye towards utility. That said, when it came to show production, the bar remained high, with runways once again staged at major Parisian landmarks, attended by a bevy of A-List guests. The week's most anticipated event took place at the famed Hôtel des Invalides, where Dior presented its first show by Jonathan Anderson, the founder of London label J.W. Anderson, who stepped down from Loewe after transforming the luxury brand over the past 11 years. Pop royalty and industry titans, including Rihanna, Sabrina Carpenter, Donatella Versace and Robert Pattinson, all sat front row for his highly anticipated debut, which was set in a room mimicking interiors of Berlin's Gemäldegalerie museum featuring 18th-century artworks. Off the heels of Dior Men's era of Kim Jones, who offered elegant twists on menswear in theatrical runway shows, Anderson ushered in a playful, everyday sense of luxury, delving into the house's heritage by reintroducing classic silhouettes morphed in new ways. The Bar jacket, cinched at the waist and introduced in the 1950s, was presented oversized — with a skirt-suit version simultaneously showcased by Carpenter in the front row — while cargo pants featured trailing panels that echoed the 1949 Dior Delft ball gown. Flowers, central to Christian Dior and his garden in Granville, featured as minute embroideries and a handbag that replicated a cover of the 1857 book 'Les Fleurs du Mal' by French poet Charles Baudelaire. At another Parisian cultural landmark, in front of the Centre Pompidou, Pharrell Williams presented a majestic show for Louis Vuitton with Beyoncé and Jay-Z arriving last before the sunset event. But the collection proved more understated than its presentation, despite its focus on India's sartorial influence on contemporary fashion. The set, by architect Bijoy Jain of Studio Mumbai, was a life-sized take on the ancient Indian board game of Snakes and Ladders. Tailoring came with an air of effortless dandyism, with indigo overcoats and mustard pleated shorts before moving toward hiking chic, with windbreakers and climbing boots complete with bejeweled socks. The eccentric show felt spun off from a Wes Anderson set, and that was intentional — with jacket motifs paying homage to the Louis Vuitton trunks featured in Anderson's 2007 train-journey film 'The Darjeeling Limited,' set in India. Rather than a museum setting, the British-born designer Grace Wales Bonner celebrated the 10th anniversary of her eponymous label by going back to school. Titled 'Jewel,' the collection took the stage at the prestigious Lycée Henri-IV secondary school in the city's Latin Quarter and explored the idea of inheritance. The garments' layered, preppy lines drew on British know-how through collaborations with Savile Row tailors Anderson & Sheppard and milliner Stephen Jones for berets. Staying true to her signature fusion of genres, Bonner also partnered with streetwear brand Y-3. In addition to sporty, paper-thin knits and sheer bejeweled shirting, Bonner paired flared silhouettes with patent opera pumps, and elevated tailcoats with baobab brooches and pops of colors on lapels and collars. At several shows, bright colors snuck onto the runway, sometimes paired with equally subversive messaging, and, at other times, a playful new take on tradition. For his second presentation in Paris, American designer Willy Chavarria opened with a bold performance — in collaboration with the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) — directly referencing the Trump administration's contested deportations of Venezuelan migrants to prisons in El Salvador. The sequence included 35 men in white t-shirts kneeling on the runway floor, appearing to echo images taken inside the Cecot megaprison; it was a declaration against 'people being profiled and persecuted with no due process,' per the show notes. From this emotional beginning, Chavarria, who often weaves Latino sartorial codes into direct political statements and messages of inclusion, revisited retro inspirations: zoot suits and film noir-inspired silhouettes in baby pink, lavender and brass satin dress coats, complete with a collaboration with classic shoemaker Charles Jourdan. At Saint Laurent, creative director Anthony Vaccarello's inspiration came from the queer communities of 1970s Fire Island in New York. That summer vibrancy translated into clothing through splashes of mustard, lime, and tangerine hues, with strong suiting softened by silk shirts topped by ton-sur-ton skinny ties or airy chiffon blouses with pussy bows. And, at Dries Van Noten, newly appointed creative director Julian Klausner unveiled his first menswear collection for the Belgian brand. Titled 'Just a Perfect Day,' the modular wardrobe shifted and loosened up over the course of an imagined night out, playing with both the hybridity of formal and casual as well as masculine and feminine. The collection featured sarongs layered over trousers, silk waistcoats paired with boxing shorts, and traditional cummerbunds — in mint or hot pink — added to more casual silhouettes. On the last day of menswear fashion week, Jacquemus, led by Simon Porte Jacquemus, hosted its closing duties. The label has become known for translating Provençal traditions into exuberant womenswear, menswear, and viral accessories. The grand show at Versailles drew a sparkling front row including actors Matthew McConaughey, Gillian Anderson and Laura Harrier. Known for weaving his own biography into his work, Jacquemus once again looked to his South of France childhood, but this time bringing his rural upbringing to the court of the king, at the palace's maze-like Orangery. The collection featured a milky palette of white, eggshell and soft pinks, constructed as ruffled aprons and corseted blouses. Tablecloth-inspired embroideries, and playful tassels referenced traditional Southern France — as did trompe-l'œil leather accessories shaped like garlic, strawberries, and leeks. Memory and myth intertwined in the show, from Marcel Pagnol films to the designer's great-grandmother and the English tourists of his childhood, he explained backstage. He used the French term 'endimanché,' or dressing up on Sunday, to describe the crisp, opaline feel of the collection, 'almost like a nurse, very minimal… my grandmother was always in white with bijoux, very pure.' Provence, he added, 'is always a dream… a very important cliché.' Scroll for the highlights from the Paris Fashion Week men's shows.
