The dazzling, multicolored mandarinfish is surely a candidate for most beautiful fish in the sea, but looks can be deceiving. This stunning salt-water beauty harbors a foul poison, making it alluring but dangerous. The fish’s uniquely foul stench has made it famous among marine enthusiasts and is often duly noted by scientists. The stink is not incidental, nor are its spines, for the mandarinfish needs protection, as it lacks one of the most basic defenses a fish normally has: scales. The colorful, blue and orange-striped outer skin of the mandarinfish (Synchiropus splendidus) contains two distinct secretions, according to Australian Geographic. One is a thick mucus that protects the scaleless fish from the rough elements; the other contains a nasty-smelling toxin. The fish’s 3-inch-long body is also covered in tiny spines which can inject a poisonous mucus into anything that tries to catch or eat it—including humans. This can be dangerous if injected …