Malta’s marine life is filled with one impressive creature after another, but chances are that at some point in your life while you were swimming, this unique fish swam right past you and you probably did not even notice.

In a post uploaded by Maltese free diver, @malta_ginger_mermaid, she informs her viewers about all there is to know regarding the Broadnose Pipefish.

The fish is part of the sea horse family and is typically found in the Eastern Atlantic, Baltic Sea, Black Sea, Sea of Azov and the Mediterranean Sea.

It has an elongated and slender body with a distinctive mouth, but it’s mostly known for its extraordinary camouflage abilities, a practise they use to avoid attacks from prey.

Their colouration can vary from shades of brown or green which means that they sometimes look exactly like your typical floating sea algae, making them very difficult to spot and notice.

They’re even quite short, only reaching a length of 20 centimetres so chances are, they swam right next to you, and you didn’t even realise they were there.

Were you lucky enough to ever spot one?