MBARI (Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute) | Happy Hagfish Day! @MBARIvideo | Uploaded October 2023 | Updated October 2024, 4 hours ago.
Hagfish are jawless fish in the superclass Agnatha, along with lampreys. They are relatively common in the deep sea. Many species of hagfish are notorious for their slimy skin. When disturbed, they ooze proteins from slime glands in their skin that respond to water by becoming a slimy outer coating, which expands into a huge mass of slime in just minutes to deter predators. They also devour carcasses on the seafloor from the inside out.