The claim

A photo of a fish that has physical features of a seal but has the face of a gorilla is going viral. It is said to be the “Algerian gorilla fish”.

Our conclusion

Users suspect a fake. Fact-checking sites also report that such a fish simply does not exist. The photo is likely to be an image that was created using artificial intelligence.

The photo shows a man standing on a canoe-like boat with the giant catch, the "Algerian gorilla fish" - a fish with a body resembling a seal, fins and the face of a gorilla - in his hands holding hands.

One of the most viewed posts about the gorilla fish is that of the Instagram account “therealtarzann” Mike Holston . Holston works for Florida's Zoological Wildlife Foundation. All his posts are about different types of animals and facts about them.

On April 20, 2023, he posted a photo of the “Algerian Gorilla Fish” and wrote about the image:

“What a great photo of this Algerian gorilla fish...this is an adult male that normally grows to about 3 to 4 feet, but this guy has been eating baby whales this winter and was completely maxed out in size!
They lay 34 eggs on land and turn bright red during mating season to attract females! They only travel in packs in September, when El Niño is at its strongest. They can live up to 13 years, but if circumcised they can live up to 48 years! #science
Comment some more facts below”

Users respond to his call to write more facts about the eye-catching fish in the comments. Here you can read, for example:

“The gorilla fish can breathe and function equally both in the sea and on land.
Of the 34 eggs laid on land, almost half are born with fins AND arms, but due to this rare creature's genetics and anomalies, the offspring usually die within the first week. This is attributed to their underdeveloped respiratory system as they have to live with reptilian characteristics while biologically they are half mammal, half fish. Sightings have become extremely rare since Namor returned to rule over his distant relatives from sea and land.”

By the way, Namor is a fictional character from the Marvel Universe . 😉

In a tweet on April 17th, a user wrote about the photo:

“It’s an Algerian gorilla fish. They usually live in the nearby riverbeds to mate during the warmer seasons. This is the first photo I've seen of one this large as they are usually 3-4ft long. It must be due to the climate shifts… besides, I just made that sh..s up.”

And the photo of the fish has also found its way onto Facebook. For example, the site “Raw Nitro” this post on April 16th:

___STEADY_PAYWALL___

General impression: The picture is fake

There are also some fact checks about the gorilla fish on the Internet, such as: B. from Indy100 . – Here we come to the conclusion that “all in all, it is clear that the Algerian gorilla fish is not real and that it is an altered image.” However, the actual origin of the photo remains unclear.

Sportskeeda writes: "Whoever altered the image probably mixed a seal, a coelacanth and a gorilla to create the peculiar Algerian gorilla fish, which does not exist in reality."

VerdadeUfo site is also sure: “If you look closely, you can conclude that the photo was digitally manipulated. The man in the canoe was probably holding another object in his hands, which distorts the image. Still, the author's ability to create an almost convincing illusion has baffled the internet. The Algerian gorilla fish, on the other hand, is a fictional creature that does not exist in reality.”

But where does the image come from?

The oldest post that can be found using a reverse image search is from April 16th. The number of search results is also limited, which is noticeable when you consider how viral this image has already become.

But we found what we were looking for on Facebook. In a group for images created with artificial intelligence called the “AI Art Universe”. was posted here on April 15th by user Andy Weber . His image description reads: “The elusive gorilla fish.”

MIMIKAMA
Screenshot Facebook “AI Art Universe”

So we can assume that Andy Weber created the image using artificial intelligence.

Conclusion

Rating: FALSE

There is no record of the existence of an “Algerian Gorilla Fish”.

Users suspect that the image is a fake that was created using image editing/Photoshop or artificial intelligence.

A posting in a Facebook group where AI images are shared confirms the latter suspicion.

Source:

sportskeeda , indy100 , verdadeufo

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